The Silver Owl
by pipermclean-beautyqueen
Summary: Attacked. Captured. Sold. Seven year old Annabeth's life grew harder and harder. She lost her home, family, and started to lose her hope. But as she grew up, she learned hope can come in odd forms, even in the form of a silver owl necklace. AU
1. Promises

**Hey! So I decided to write another story. And yes, Percy will be in this story too.**

**~This chapter is dedicated to my best friend, Cadence, who promised me that whenever, wherever I need help, or just someone to talk to, she'll be there. Cadee, I promise that to you too. Love you!~**

* * *

_The grey owl flew over the Greek village, glancing over all homes on the island. There was one man she needed to find._

_Finally, she spotted a farmer tending to his sheep. After carefully watching him from a safe distance, she was certain this was the man that she was looking for. His sandy-blonde hair, brown eyes, athletic build… _

_Yes, this was the man she was searching for._

_"Frederick, protect her," the grey owl thought to herself. "Give her the silver owl. Protect her."_

* * *

"Annabeth!" Malcolm shouted "Annabeth!" Malcolm shouted.

I clamped my eyes shut tighter. Staying still, breathing slowly, I waited for him to leave. "Annabeth!" he called again.

I groaned. Couldn't he let me sleep? I sat up slowly and scowled at him. "What." Rubbing my eyes with the back of my hand, I got out of bed.

Malcolm smirked. "Good morning to you too."

I glared, feeling slightly annoyed. "You woke me up this early just to say good morning?" Malcolm only laughed, and I added, "So what is it?"

Smirking, he said, "It's your turn to take the sheep out."

With a sigh, I shoved past Malcolm to get to the sheep, though I never minded taking the sheep to the valley to graze. It was peaceful there. Malcolm shouted to me, "You forgot to say good morning!" Before I shut the front door, I heard him laughing.

* * *

I plopped down on the grass, legs aching from the long walk, and watched the sheep wander.

I was in the valley, just a short walk from my home. In front of me was a huge stretch of green, dotted with pink and white flowers which filled my nose with an intoxicating scent. The only sound was the lilting song of the rolling brook, swollen with the summer rain. The only company I had here were the sheep.

The five white sheep that belonged to my family wandered the valley, grazing on the grass and flowers. The sixth, a fluffy little lamb born last spring, was nuzzled against me. I mindlessly pulled up a handful of grass and fed it to the lamb.

"You know," I said to the lamb, "you're lucky. Your life is so easy. My family does everything for you and all you have to do is eat and sleep." The lamb said nothing in return and only ate the grass in my hands.

Soon, the sun had turned the blue sky to vibrant shades of orange, pink, and purple. I stood up and, sticking two fingers in my mouth, I whistled as loudly as I could.

"Come on!" I shouted at the top of my lungs, cupping my hands around my mouth. "Time to go!"

The sheep have been doing this nearly every day of their lives. They knew what the whistle meant: we're going home. With a swarm of sheep and a stubby white lamb jostling around me, I climbed up the slope back to our small brick home.

* * *

After I put the sheep back in their pens, I bounced through the door and slammed it shut. The house was dark, lit only by the sunlight streaming through the window "Daddy! I'm home!" I yelled.

My daddy looked up from my two baby brothers and smiled at me. "Annabeth, do you mind watching your brothers while I get your dinner? Thanks."

He left without waiting for my answer. With a sigh, I trudged across the room to the crib Daddy had built for my twin brothers.

I slowly peered inside. Both Bobby and Matthew were fast asleep. Out of boredom, I started poking one of them to see if he'll wake up.

"Annabeth!" My head whipped around to see my step-mother. "What are you doing?" she shrieked. "Look at how dirty your hands are! Don't touch your brother until you wash your hands!" She stormed out of the room, leaving me staring down at my hands. They weren't _that_ dirty.

Soon Daddy came back, holding a slice of bread. He handed it to me and sat down on a wooden chair. With a stern look on his face, he said, "Your mother looked angry when I saw her a second ago. Annabeth, what did you do to her?"

Ever since Daddy remarried, he's always been busy with his new wife. I tried not to resent her, but she made it so hard. Then, Bobby and Matthew came along. He had created a new and better life for himself, while I slowly faded into the background. The evening was the only time I had alone with him. That is, if the twins were asleep.

"I didn't do anything," I said. My dad just sighed and beckoned me over. I curled up on the ground beside him, leaning against his chair. "Daddy, tell me about mommy," I insisted, just like I do every other night.

He smiled down at me warmly. "Your mother was a very special person," he began, just like he did every night. "She was very smart and beautiful, just like you." I burrowed my head into his side and kept listening.

"You have her grey eyes, Annabeth. You're just as smart and beautiful as she is. Yes, your mother was very special."

He paused for a second, but continued. "Maybe she was too special. That's why she had to leave us. She's a very important woman."

"Do you think she'll ever come to visit?" I asked.

"Perhaps."

We sat in silence. Daddy tells me the exact same things every night. My mommy was smart. My mommy was beautiful. My mommy was special. It was all I knew about her.

"Tell me more," I finally said. My dad looked at me with a blank expression on his face. "Tell me more," I demanded again. "You _must_ know more than that!"

Daddy didn't say anything. For a second, I was afraid I had gone too far by asking for more, but he sighed and spoke. "She was from Athens. I met her at the Parthenon. Soon after, we had Malcolm. Two years later, we had you. But she was too busy to stay. She had a job, a very important job. That's why she left us."

I soaked in the new information he had given me. He was about to say more, when my step-mother walked into the room. "Time for bed, Annabeth!" she said.

I looked outside. The sky had grown dark, and small pinpricks of light were starting to appear in the sky. The moon had come out and was casting silvery shadows in the house.

"Can I wait until Malcolm comes home?" I asked her.

She frowned, but answered, "Very well." She left the room, leaving me with Daddy and the soft snores of the twins.

Daddy watched me and smiled. "You know what, Annabeth? I think you're old enough."

"Old enough for what?"

"Come with me." He led me to the back of the room and opened a small wooden box that lay on the table. I had never paid much attention to that box. It was old and plain, nothing special.

I peered over Daddy's arm. Inside the box was a silver necklace, as beautiful as the box was plain. On the necklace was a silver owl charm.

"Your mother gave me this right before she left," he said. "She told me, 'Give it to her when the time is right. It will help her one day.' I asked her how I would know what time is right, and she told me I would just know."

I stared at the silver owl. "Will this really protect me?"

He ruffled my hair playfully and put the necklace around my neck. "I promise it will. I love you my little Annabeth."

The silence that filled the room was broken almost immediately.

Malcolm barged into the room, slamming the door wide open. Beads of sweat ran down his face from running. His grey eyes were wide with fear.

"Pirates!" he screamed breathlessly. "The whole town's under attack!" His voice faltered and he closed his eyes.

I ran to the door to see. At first, I saw nothing unusual. The small town looked fast asleep.

Then, I saw it. A tall tower of grey smoke billowing into the night sky. Before long, the flames had engulfed entire houses. The screams grew louder and louder with each passing second.

I gasped and ran into my brother's arms, shaking hysterically. My eyes were clamped shut, but I could still see the flickering orange flames. The image of my burning town and the sounds of the desperate screams were seared into my mind.

My home was under attack.

Malcolm's arms wrapped around me protectively. Though he was only two years older than me, his arms were already strong and muscular from working in the farm fields. It made me feel safer.

Fear flickered in Daddy's eyes, but it disappeared so quickly I decided I had imagined it. "Malcolm," he said calmly, "take Annabeth into the forest and hide. They won't find you there. I'll get your mother and the twins. We'll find you, okay? Now go! Promise not to come back for us!"

After Malcolm muttered a quick promise, Daddy shoved us out of the house and ran to get my step-mother. Malcolm grabbed my hand firmly and started racing towards the mass of trees that borders our town.

I quickly glanced behind us. Daddy was inside the house, leaving the door wide open. With my free hand, I gripped onto the silver owl necklace. I thought back to what Daddy had said as he gave it to me. _I promise it will. I love you my little Annabeth._

I couldn't leave him.

"No!" I screamed. I shook my hand free of my brother's grasp.

Malcolm tried to grab me again, but I ran out of his reach. "What are you doing?" he yelled back at me angrily. "Are you trying to get us killed?"

I glared at him. "Are you really going to leave Daddy like that? What if the pirates kill him or take him as a slave?" I yelled. In a softer tone, I whimpered, "What if we never see him again?"

Malcolm reached out his arm to grab me again, but I continued screaming. "We're family! Families are supposed to stick together. I'm not leaving Daddy!" I turned around and ran as fast as my legs would take me. Angry tears blurred my vision, but I hastily wiped them away with my arm.

I ran blindly through the dark. The darkness came alive around me with shadows materializing from thin air. The shadows morphed into more and more screaming villagers and the occasional pirate. None of them paid any attention to a seven year old girl though. Dead bodies were already strewn all over the streets.

I was nearly home when I felt someone grab my shoulder. "No, Malcolm! Let go!" I thrashed wildly, but the grip on my shoulder only grew stronger.

"Let me-" I cut myself off with a gasp. An unfamiliar face loomed down at me. A wicked scowl was pasted on his face.

I did the first thing I could think of. I kicked his leg as hard as I could.

He didn't even flinch. "Do that one more time and I'll kill you." He grabbed me tighter and pressed a knife against my neck. I whimpered softly as he dragged me past the dead bodies to the rocky beach. A small wooden rowboat, bobbing slightly in the waves, was there waiting for him.

"Get in the boat," he said in a gruff voice. He pushed me and I stumbled in. He grabbed a thick braided rope and used it to tie my hands behind my back. I winced at how tightly it was tied, but I didn't dare make a sound.

In the boat were two other children, a girl and a boy, just as defenseless as me. I recognized one as the baker's daughter, but I doubt she knew who I was. A mountain of food, jewellery, and other precious things that the pirate had stolen lay at my feet.

The man grabbed the wooden oars and, with long and strong heaves, the man rowed us to the ship anchored in the ocean. A shudder ran through my body as I thought of what would become of me.

Too soon, we entered the dark shadow of the ship. The rowboat teetered a bit, then stopped right beside the ship, nearly touching its side. A tattered and frayed rope ladder hung over the side.

Glancing back at the shore, I saw the flickering flames slowly dying and the screams gradually fading. Everyone that couldn't escape was either dead or taken prisoner.

The forest that dominated the island taunted me, and I couldn't help thinking of what could have happened. I could have escaped with my brother. I could have been safe.

I was suddenly filled with a single burning desire to jump into the ocean and swim to shore. We weren't too far away, I might still be able to do it. It would be difficult with my hands tied behind my back, but not impossible.

I jumped as I heard a splash behind me. I turned to see what had made the noise, but I saw nothing. I looked at the girl and the man to see if they knew what it was. They were looking back and forth from the water to the seat where the boy had been sitting.

With a gasp, I scanned the murky waves for the boy. He had disappeared. All of a sudden, a pained cry cut through the night like a knife, but was quieted almost immediately. The silence was worse than the scream.

The man smirked, as if the boy's death amused him. "There are dangerous creatures in these waters, girls. Go ahead and jump. Try to swim to the shore and see what happens."

Both the baker's daughter and I shook our heads, refusing to meet the man's eyes. I slumped down on my seat. There was no escape.

The man chuckled. "Now, will you do exactly as I say?" The girl and I both nodded. A smile grew on his face. "Good." With one swift motion, he sliced the ropes tied around my wrists. He did the same for the other girl.

"Now up!" he commanded. He kicked the other girl and she stumbled onto the rope ladder. Her pale white hands gripped onto the first rung to keep herself from falling. Shaking with fear, she climbed up, bit by bit.

I gulped. I was next. With the man's gaze on my back, I put one hand on the ladder. Trying to muster up all the bravery I had in me, I grasped onto it tighter with both hands and pushed myself up, the frayed rope causing a burning pain in my hands. The ladder swayed slightly as I climbed.

Trying to calm myself, I concentrated only on climbing. I watched my hands inch up the ladder. _Left hand, right hand, left hand, right hand._ I barely noticed when I reached the top.

I crawled over the side of the ship. When my feet landed on the deck, the floorboard creaked, causing me to jump. I tried to look for the other girl, but I barely had time to look around when someone behind me picked me up and swung me over his shoulder.

I heard the creak of a door opening. I looked up to see a dark room. Then, I was thrown in.

I cried out as I landed. Whoever had thrown me in here threw me hard enough for me to bang my head on the back wall. I slumped down against the wall, rubbing my head, trying to get rid of the throbbing pain.

The room I was in was dark, but I began to see faint outlines as my eyes adjusted. There was nothing in the room except for some boxes in the corner.

I heard a choked sob beside me. I spun around and saw the baker's daughter. She couldn't have been more than five years old. That would make me, being seven, the older one here.

I scurried over to her and awkwardly put an arm around her. She barely noticed.

"We'll be alright," I started to say. But that would be a lie. Daddy had always said lying is very bad. I tried to think of something good about our situation.

"Well… at least we're not alone, right?" The little girl looked up at me, tears spilling from her deep blue eyes. Timidly, she nodded.

I smiled, trying to seem upbeat about our situation, or at least as upbeat as I could be. "I'm Annabeth, what's your name?"

"Kallista," she whispered. "My mommy and daddy called me Kallie."

"Well Kallie, we'll stick together, okay? Don't worry, I'll take care of you."

Kallie sniffled and rubbed the tears from her eyes with the back of her hand. "You promise?" she said. "We stick together?"

I tried to smile at her. As confidently as I could manage, I said, "I promise."

* * *

**What do you guys think about the story? Tell me by leaving a review!**


	2. Family

**Thank you to everyone who reviewed the first chapter! It means so much to me :) I would love it if people gave me constructive criticism. I really want to get better at writing.**

**~This chapter is dedicated to my mom, who accepted me into her family like I was her own daughter. Annabeth would be one lucky girl if her new family was as great as mine~**

* * *

_Malcolm  
The Forest_

_From behind the thick wall of trees, the young boy watched, crouching by the bushes, as the fires slowly died down. All the life in the village had disappeared. Those who remained alive were hidden, as he was. Everyone else was gone._

_He knew was pointless to wait for his dad and step-mom now. If they were alive, they would have been captured by the pirates. If not... he was alone. And for this, he blamed himself. "I should have kept a stronger grip on my sister," he whispered. "I should have convinced her to stay with me. And when I saw the pirate sneaking up on her, I could have warned her, saved her, anything to help." Of course, he didn't do any of this. Instead, he ran. He ran away to the refuge of the forest, as he was told to do, and he waited._

_In the distance, he could see the ship starting to leave. Lights glowed from the ship and he could hear loud shouts, celebrating the newly captured slaves. The young boy prayed his sister was dead, killed by the pirate. It was better than getting captured._

* * *

I was curled up in the corner, fingering the silver owl. The detail on it was incredible. Each individual feather was carved on, and its wings were spread out, as if the owl was soaring through the sky. The eyes made the owl seem almost alive.

"Annabeth?" a small voice whispered. "Are you awake?"

I hadn't been able to sleep, despite how late it was. I turned to see Kallie's blue eyes watching me.

"Yeah, I'm awake," I said. "What is it?"

"I… I want my mommy," she whispered, "and my daddy…" At that point, she burst into tears. I scurried over and wrapped my arms around her. I had to be the responsible one.

"Don't cry Kallie," I murmured over and over, trying to sooth her.

Slowly, the crying started to stop. Rubbing the tears from her eyes, she asked, "Don't you miss your mommy and daddy too?"

"Yeah, I do," I admitted. I decided not to tell her I don't even know my mommy. "But Kallie, we can't cry over what happened. We're two strong girls, and we're going to be brave about what happened."

"But what if we can't be brave?"

"We'll have each other. We'll keep each other brave."

Kallie nodded. "As long as I'm not alone," she said. I had no idea how long we just sat there, arms around each other. Eventually, we both fell asleep.

* * *

"Get up!" a gruff voice shouted, slamming the door open, causing both Kallie and me to wake. The man that had taken us to the ship stood at the door, and shoved each of us a stale loaf of bread and a cup of water.

He stayed at the door and watched us eat. Kallie literally inhaled the bread and water, but I watched the man warily as I ate.

Finally, when both of us had finished eating, he said, "Now, we're getting closer and closer to the city of Athens every minute. When we get there, you'll do exactly as I say, or you get whipped. Until then, go make yourselves useful." He dragged us out of the small cabin and added, "Now, before you go and make your escape plan, remember I'll be watching."

Kallie and I were both given a bucket of soapy water and a rag, and were told to scrub the deck. Kallie hesitated slightly, but joined in when she saw that I had already started working. After an hour of scrubbing, I had cleaned the entire area around our cabin, while Kallie was scrubbing furiously at a black stain on the ground, unable to get it out.

Eventually, Kallie threw her rag down and pouted. "I don't want to do this. Why do we have to scrub the deck? It's dirty! I'm going back to the cabin." She stood up to leave.

The man was there in an instant. He picked her up by her shirt, causing Kallie's short stubby legs to dangle above the ground, and glared. "You aren't going anywhere until this deck is spotless."

Kallie was whimpering, but she still screamed back to him, "I'm not your servant!"

A grin grew on the man's face. "Do you remember what I said earlier? What did I say would happen if you don't listen to orders?"

He dropped Kallie and shouted, "Turn around!" Kallie, who had lost any of the bravery she had before, did as he said.

As long as I live, I would never be able to forget what happened next. As the whipped lashed at her back, Kallie let out a strangled scream. Her eyes opened wide with pain and shock and tears streamed down her face. The man whipped her again, causing Kallie to scream even louder.

The noise had caused a crowd to gather, and men started cheering. "Again! Again! Harder this time!" they yelled. I stood clamped to the ground, shocked. I barely noticed the crowd around us. My eyes were on Kallie's back. I couldn't see a bit of skin, it was completely covered by blood.

"Stop!" I screamed. Everyone turned to see what had interrupted the whipping. "She'll behave! She promises! Right, Kallie?" Kallie, eyes squeezed shut in pain, nodded.

The man scowled. "Let that be a warning to both of you. Next time this happens, it will be worse."

We worked the whole day without saying a word to each other. The entire time, the man sat on a crate with a handful of food, watching us lazily. It took all of my effort, and some help from Kallie, to restrain from punching the life out of him. By the time we finished, both our faces were red and burnt from being in the sun all day.

"My arms feels like they're going to fall off and my back hurts!" Kallie whined, once we were back in our cabin that night. She slumped down onto the ground. "I want to go back home!"

I had ripped a piece of my shirt off and was wrapping it around her, trying to bandage her wound. "Hold still," I said when she started to struggle. She was whimpering and her eyes were watering from the pain, but she managed to contain her tears.

"There," I said, tightening the bandage one last time. "I'm done."

"When will it stop hurting?" Kallie asked. I wasn't sure how to answer her. The wound was deep and still bleeding. Though I was no doctor, I knew it would take a long time to heal. Thankfully, she quickly forgot about her previous question, distracted by my necklace. "What's this?" Kallie grabbed the silver owl.

"It's a necklace. My daddy gave it to me. He said it would protect me."

Kallie thought about this for a bit. "If I'm with you, will it protect me too?" Without waiting for my answer, she wrapped her arms around my neck and said, "I'll always stay with you. Then both of us can always be safe!"

I hugged her back and smiled. "I won't ever leave you Kallie."

* * *

The next day, I woke up early. I found the bread and water someone had left while I was asleep and used the water to wash Kallie's wound. Kallie whimpered softly in her sleep, but she didn't move. I ripped off another strip from my shirt and changed her bandage. The bleeding had stopped, but Kallie would probably always have scars on her back.

Gently, I woke her up. "Good morning Annabeth," Kallie said softly, smiling at me while rubbing her eyes with her hand.

"Good morning to you too." I handed her both slices of bread and watched while she ate.

Once she was finished, she asked, "Do we have to work again today? My arms still hurt from yesterday."

I was about to say something back, but the ship suddenly jerked forward. Both of us fell over, and Kallie let out a cry of pain from landing on her back. "Annabeth!" she cried out.

"I'm right here!" I stood up to get to her, and nearly fell over again. Then, the door slammed wide open. Our kidnapper stood at the door.

"Don't bother trying to run away. We've reached an island, and the king wants to buy a slave. You," he said, looking at me, "would be perfect."

He strode across the tiny cabin and picked me up, throwing me over his shoulder. In my shock, I did absolutely nothing to resist.

"No!" Kallie screamed. "Annabeth, no!" Kallie had attached herself to the man's leg, shrieking and crying. Her screams shook me from my shock. I kicked and screamed, punching the man's back. It didn't do any good.

"Get off!" the man shouted at Kallie. He shook his leg and Kallie went flying to the other side of the cabin, slamming into the wall.

The man walked out of the cabin and locked the door shut. Kallie immediately started pounding at the door, screaming hysterically. "Annabeth! Don't leave me! Annabeth!"

Fear and panic pulsed through my body, filling me from head to toe. I grabbed onto the doorknob, holding onto it like it was the only thing that could save me. I could feel myself losing my grip on it as the man tried to pull me off, so I quickly yelled, "Kallie! Behave and they won't hurt you. You'll be okay, I'll come and find you!"

I finally lost my grip. As I started getting dragged off the ship, I screamed one last time, "I promise I'll find you Kallie, I promise!"

Once we were off the ship, the man got a rope out and tied it around my neck. "If you run away," he said, "the rope will tighten, and you'll die. Got that?" I nodded, and he started dragging me to a castle on the hill. "Hurry up!" he shouted. I ran so that I could keep up.

I blinked back the tears that were forming in my eyes. Whatever I do, I couldn't let the man see me cry. _Remember Kallie_, I told myself. _Stay strong, so you can keep your promise to her_.

Soon enough, we were at the castle gates. The man and the guard exchanged a few words, and we were let in.

We were met by a man in a bright red tunic. The man had long brown hair and extremely bushy eyebrows. He beamed down at me and said, "Well, this must be the new slave! I am Chiron. I'm in charge of all the royal slaves."

Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out an old brown bag. "This is for you," he said, putting the bag in the hands of my kidnapper. He opened the bag to show the pile of golden drachmas inside.

"Well, I should be getting back to the ship now," he said to Chiron. He untied the rope around my neck and left me with Chiron.

Chiron led me inside, saying, "Your responsibilities here will be simple. You will clean all the rooms in the top floor. There will be another girl to help, of course. All the cleaning supplies will be in your room. Tell me if you're running out and I'll get you some more."

I stood up straight and held my head up high, refusing to show any sign of weakness. I had to show him that I could be strong. "Where is my room?" I asked him.

"I'll show you there right now," Chiron said. He smiled and added, "You'll like it here. All the slaves are like family."

My room was small and plain. There was a bed and in the corner, there was a broom, dustpan, and brush.

"I'll leave you here to get settled," Chiron said. "There are two uniforms on your bed. You can meet the other slaves tonight, and you'll start your work tomorrow."

As soon as he left, I slumped down on my bed. I lay there for at least an hour, just curled up in a ball and fingering the silver owl. It was the one thing I had left of my family. At that moment, I swore that as long as I live, and ever after, I would never take the necklace off. I would always keep a part of my family, and Kallie, with me.

There was a knock on the door. I sighed, then got up to meet my new family.

* * *

**Thanks to everyone who left a review! I'm glad you guys like this story.**


	3. Smiles

**Hey guys! I had nothing to do and was just sitting around lazily when I thought, "I should update my story!" So here it is. Chapter 3!**_  
_

**Disclaimer: First of all, I'm a thirteen year old girl, not a... something year old man... Sorry, not going to look up how old he is :) Second, if I was Rick Riordan, I'd be writing the House of Hades (the actual one, not my fanfic), not the Silver Owl. **

**~This chapter is dedicated to my sister, who kept me smiling through the hardest times in my life. "When life gives you a hundred reasons to cry, show life you have a thousand reasons to smile." That was her favourite quote. I still remember what she said when she first told me. "You give me a thousand and one reasons to smile." I miss you Rachy~**

* * *

_Kallie  
The Pirate Ship_

_She leaned over the side of the ship, watching the shore grow larger and larger. Soon, she could make out the individual trees, houses, and eventually people. As she watched the dark grey waves crash against the ship spraying her with salty water, the ship reached the land._

_She was led off the ship with a rope tied tight around both her wrists. She was tied to five others that had been taken captive. They had all been trapped in the lower decks. Despite the situation, the girl felt thankful. _At least I could at least see the sun every day, _the girl thought to herself,_ and know that if Mommy and Daddy were alive, Apollo would be shining down on all three of us, saying, "Don't worry, you'll see each other again one day."_ It was the sun that had kept her sane the entire trip. And Annabeth as well, of course._

_One of the pirates dragged the children off the boat, holding onto one end of the rope. Around them, people went about their daily lives, laughing and chatting like there wasn't a chain of prisoners walking past them._

_Too busy looking around, the girl hadn't realized how close she had been walking to the boy in front of her and stepped, quite hard, on his foot. She gasped, and looking down at her feet, muttered a quick apology. When she finally dared to look up, she realized the boy was smiling at her. She smiled back._

_The children walked for well over an hour, and their legs were starting to grow tired. Everyone was dragging their feet along the ground, but no one dared to complain._

_Suddenly, the girl ran into the boy in front of her. She blushed, thinking of the many times she had stepped on his foot during the walk, but he just smiled at her again._

_Way at the front of the line, the pirate was talking to a man with dark hair and purple eyes. The man had a mad, crazy look in his eyes, but their conversation was obviously serious. Finally, the man gave a pile of coins to the pirate, and the pirate handed him the rope connecting the six prisoners._

_Once the pirate left, the man said to them, "I am your new master for now. Tomorrow, we're off to the city, where you will all be given to families that… ah, require your assistance." He ushered them into a cabin not much bigger than the one the girl had stayed in on the ship and added, "You'll need all the rest you can get."_

* * *

"Hello?" a low voice called from outside, causing me to freeze on the spot. Slowly, I reached for the best weapon I could find, a hammer that for some reason happened to be in my room. I didn't think about why it would be there at the moment though, because that voice sounded far too familiar.

Slowly, cautiously, I approached the door. I put my hand on the handle, ready to turn it when suddenly, the door flew wide open. I screamed, and ran at the pirate with the hammer. With all the strength I could gather, I swung it down straight at his face.

"Whoa!" the man shouted. He dodged the hammer and grabbed my wrists, causing the hammer to go skidding down the hall.

Desperately, I kept kicking and screaming, though I knew inside it wouldn't help. "No more pirates!" I screamed, kicking his legs. "Go away!" Then, I caught sight of a second pirate, or at least the shield she carried.

"It's okay!" the man shouted. Okay? How could he say it's okay? The face on the shield caused my heart to almost stop beating. I screamed louder than I've ever screamed before, and tried to run back into the room, as far away from the shield as I could get.

"Thalia," the man yelled over his shoulders. "put your shield away! You're scaring her!"

Immediately, the shield disappeared. I scanned the corridor, trying to figure out where the shield went, but it was nowhere to be seen.

"Hey, little girl," the pirate that was carrying the shield said. "It's alright. We're not going to hurt you. I'm Thalia. This is Luke."

"Pirates!" I cried, kicking the man again.

The man, Luke, grabbed onto me tighter. "No. I'm a slave. I help with the master's trades." I looked up at him to take a close look at his face. He was blonde, with bright blue eyes. He had a scar on his face, but he didn't look like he could be a pirate at all.

Thalia kneeled down beside Luke. "What's your name, kiddo?" I don't know what it was. Maybe it was her electric blue eyes that had seemed cold had first, but I now saw was kind and welcoming. Maybe it was just because of the gentleness in her voice or the warmth in her smile. Something told me I could trust her.

"Annabeth." Both Luke and Thalia smiled.

"Nice name," Luke said to me. Thalia nodded in agreement. "You seem pretty strong. We could use a worker like you."

I looked up at him with wide eyes. "You could?" I asked. I had always been the weakling in the family. Daddy and Malcolm were strong. They could even lift our sheep! Even Bobby and Matthew were stronger than I was at their age.

"Of course we could!" Thalia said, smiling.

"Luke! Thalia!" a voice called from down the hallway. The three of us turned to see Chiron walking towards us. "I didn't expect it to take you two this long to bring the newest member of our family down for lunch!"

Oh great. It's my first day here and I already get kicked out for attacking two of the other slaves. What would I do, alone on the streets of Greece with no money or food whatsoever? I sighed, working up the courage to confess what had happened.

But before I could say anything, Luke spoke. "I'm sorry Chiron. We got a bit held up. There was a small accident with the… uh…" he picked up the hammer I had dropped.

"With the hammer?" Chiron asked?

Thalia glared at Luke. "Yeah…" she said.

For a second, I thought Chiron would question us more, but he merely shrugged and said, "Well, time for lunch."

* * *

Chiron, Luke, and Thalia led me down the stairs. I trailed behind them through a maze of halls and rooms, wondering if I'll ever be able to find my way around this place. Finally, they stopped in front of a large door and entered.

I followed them in and gasped. A long table had been set with dishes of exotic fruits and nuts. At one end of the table sat a man and a woman in the most regal clothing I had ever seen, which really doesn't give them justice considering I was from a small poor town.

_Our masters_, Luke mouthed to me. I nodded to show I understood.

Beside them was a boy with the same blonde hair as the woman and the same blue eyes as the man. _Their son_, I guessed. The boy and woman looked rather bored, but the man stood up and walked towards us.

"Our newest slave girl!" he said. "What is your name?"

"Annabeth," I answered.

"I am Zeus, but you will just call me master."

I looked up at him curiously. "Like the god," I said.

Zeus winked at me and replied, "Exactly." He turned to the boy and the woman. "This is my queen. You will just call her master as well. And this is my son Jason. You won't see him as much, since you're on cleaning duty, but when he needs your assistance, he will be your master as well."

He noticed Chiron, Luke, and Thalia standing behind me. "I see you've already met two of our other slaves," he said. _Two?_ I wondered. _But there are three of them!_

Zeus saw the puzzled expression on my face and smiled. "Thalia," he said, "is my daughter."

I turned and gaped at her. Thalia, the strong and kind girl who I had mistaken as a slave, was a princess? Thalia, who was now blushing, was staring at the ground, the walls, her father, anywhere except my eyes.

"Now, time to enjoy our lunch!" Everyone rushed to the table and sat down. I took an empty seat between Luke and a girl with wild red hair.

Zeus stood at the head of the table and cleared his throat. "I'd like to welcome our newest slave girl, Annabeth. Now..." he paused, either for dramatic effect or just because he didn't know what else to say, "dig in!"

Everyone immediately started eating. The girl beside me turned and smiled. "Hey!" she said. "I'm Rachel. We'll be cleaning the top floor together. If you need any help, just ask me."

Her smile made a small smile grow on my lips. Small, but still there. "Thanks," I said.

"So," Rachel asked. "Where'd you come from?"

I paused, trying to figure out how much I should tell her. "A small town," I finally said, "right by a valley. It's on an island."

"That sounds cool!" Rachel said.

"What about you?" I asked.

Rachel, for the first time since I've first seen her, stopped smiling. She stared down at her food, not sad, but deep in thought. "I'm not really sure," she finally said. "I've been here for as long as I can remember."

Both of us were silent. I was trying to figure out how to respond, when Rachel's green eyes brightened. "We can be best friends! I always wanted a best friend, but everyone's too old and too busy. Do you want to be best friends?" she asked.

My small smile grew even more. "I'd like that."

Rachel beamed at me. While everyone else ate, we were too busy chatting and laughing. By the time people finished eating and were starting to leave, I smiled so much my cheeks hurt and I was laughing so hard tears were running down my face.

* * *

I looked out the small window in my room at the pale crescent moon. The silvery moonlight casted shadows, which all disappeared once I lit my candle. I sat and watched the flickering orange flame, wondering how something so seemingly harmless that I was using to warm my hands and light my room could also cause so much destruction.

I opened the window, and a gust of wind blew out the candle. I peered down to the ground and thought about how easy it would be to escape. It was easy for any of the slaves to escape. But why didn't they?

"Life is good here in the castle," said a voice behind me. I turned to see a slave girl standing at the door, causing me to blush when I realized I had forgotten to close the door. "We're the lucky ones. Not all slaves are treated as well as our masters treat us. Life here is much better than life out there," she said, as if she had read my mind.

Then, she smiled at me and added, "You'll like it here. Get some rest, tomorrow's your first day of work!" She left, leaving me alone.

I tried to sleep then, I really did. But every time I closed my eyes, I saw massive fires, the dark of the cabin on the ship, Kallie crying for her parents, Kallie's back covered in blood. Everything that I wanted to just forget. So I sat up in bed and prayed.

"Hestia, goddess of the hearth, keep my family safe. Keep little Kallie safe. Please, keep the fire in their hearths burning bright. Don't let them lose their smiles."

* * *

**Yes, ancient Greek slaves really were welcomed into the family like Annabeth was. They were given almost all the rights that a regular citizen had, except the right to vote. Well... review!**


	4. Believe

**Chapter 4 of the Silver Owl! A lot of you have been asking how much longer Annabeth will be seven. Well we're now moving ahead 5 years! Annabeth is twelve now, just like in the Lightning Thief.**

**Pokemonchen, an amazing author, had an amazing idea of writing a bunch of PJO one shots related to the subway/Subway. She's getting a bunch of authors to write their own one shots so that there will be 101 in total! Three of them have already been posted (two are Pokemonchen's, one is mine). If you're interested in writing a one shot or want to suggest your favourite PJO couple, leave a review on Subway Experiences 101 or PM Pokemonchen!**

**This chapter is dedicated to all of my readers! All my readers taught me that it's possible to actually get people to read my stories, and even like them :) Guys, just _believe_ you'll get loyal readers for your stories XD (Just trying to use the chapter title like always). I'll read any of your PJO fics if you ask!**

**One last thing. I realized I never thanked my friend Cadee C! This girl is amazing. She edits nearly all my chapters. To all those people that said there are absolutely no spelling/grammar errors in this story, you can thank Cadence for that!**

* * *

_Annabeth's Father  
The City-State of Athens_

_He strode down the bustling Athenian streets, pushing through the crowd that gathers whenever the market opens. The summer sun beat down on the crowds, but he barely noticed. The brightly coloured rainbow of linen tunics and scents of freshly baked bread drew in customers from all over the city, but he just walked past, as if the market wasn't even there. He had his mind set on reaching one place, and one place only. The Parthenon._

_As he grew near the temple, his pace sped up until he was nearly running. The people around him turned into a blur of colours. The white stone pillars of the wisdom goddess grew closer and closer._

_He blinked back the tears that were forming in his eyes. He knew he should be thankful he had escaped alive, and that he still had his wife and twin boys with him. But his thoughts always wandered back to his lost son and daughter, no matter how hard he tried to forget. He could only hope they were safe and had escaped the pirates. If not, it would probably be better for them to be dead._

_When he entered, he was met by the massive gold and white statue of the goddess. He knelt down at her feet, eyes clamped shut. "Athena," he prayed in a hushed tone, "protect our son and daughter. Bring them home."_

* * *

_5 years later..._

"These uniforms are horrible!" Rachel said as we mopped one of the many palace rooms. "All black and white. You know what? They should be purple. Or gold, to match your hair and red to match mine!" Rachel talked on and on about the palace uniforms. She usually tended to talk a mile a minute. It worked out fine though, since I was content with just listening. "Hello?" Rachel stared at me. "Are you even listening?"

Laughing, I said, "Rachel, you talk so fast it's impossible for anyone to keep up."

"Not my fault these uniforms are ugly." She slammed her mop down into the bucket of soapy water, spraying it all over me.

"Hey!" I screamed. "Now my uniform is ugly _and_ wet!" A big smile grew on Rachel's face. She looked like she was trying extremely hard not to laugh. Suddenly, a plan formed in my mind. I grabbed the bucket of water and dumped it on her.

Rachel screamed and leaped up from the ground. I was sprawled on the ground, clutching my stomach and laughing so hard I couldn't breathe, making me as red as a pomegranate. Rachel's eyes filled with mock anger. "Oh, you are so going to regret doing that!" she said. She swung her mop in the air like a sword and charged. Screaming, we chased each other around the top floor.

It's been five years since I first met Rachel and all the other slaves in the castle. I had made friends with most of the other slaves as well. At least, Rachel forced me to talk to them without glaring, and I eventually warmed up to some of them. Even Thalia, the princess, sometimes stopped by to just sit around and chat whenever we had time.

"Whoa!" Luke said when I nearly ran into him.

I slid to a stop right in front of him. "Sorry," I said panting. Rachel wasn't so lucky. She ran straight into me, pushing me into Luke and causing all of us to fall over.

"Oh gods, why are you two so wet?" Luke asked. "Rachel, especially you."

Rachel winked at me. "Our secret," Rachel said smugly.

"Well, if you don't mind you're going to have to mop the second floor by yourself today," Luke said to Rachel. "I have to take Annabeth somewhere." He put one arm around me, leading me down the stairs. I smirked when I saw Rachel pouting.

"Why?" she whined. "That's not fair. It's both of our jobs."

Luke winked at me. "Our secret," he told her.

Luke and I left while Rachel went back to cleaning. "So," Luke asked when we were alone. "Now that Rachel's not here, why are you wet? Seriously."

"She already told you. It's a secret."

Rolling his eyes, he said, "An 'accident' with the mop, I'm assuming." I shoved him, though I didn't deny what he said. He smiled at my reaction knowing he assumed correctly.

"So now that you know our secret, you can tell me yours," I said. "Where are we going?"

"You could be a lot more thankful that I got you out of cleaning duty," Luke said. When he saw the serious look on my face, he sighed and said, "Chiron wants to see you."

The rest of the time we were walking to Chiron's room, I was silent. Why would Chiron want to see me? Did I do something wrong? I thought back to the past few months. I always took my job seriously, except for the occasional water fight with Rachel. But even with the water fights, we managed to clean the second floor with time to spare. Chiron has no reason to want to see me.

"Hello?" Luke said as he knocked on Chiron's door. Inside, I heard footsteps nearing the door. I stood there nervously as Chiron came to open the door and welcome us in.

"Luke, thank you for bringing her," Chiron said. "You may go back to your regular duties now." Luke nodded and left, closing the door behind him. Chiron motioned to a wooden chair, and I sat down. Chiron sat at an identical wooden chair facing mine.

"Now Annabeth," he said. "I'm sure you're wondering why I asked Luke to bring you here." I nodded and waited for him to continue.

"As you know, Prince Jason disappeared a few years ago, leaving the throne to the princess. The king has chosen a prince from a nearby island to wed Thalia. The king wishes to build a spectacular monument to celebrate and all the architects of the kingdom are working to create a design that will please him. The king is urging anyone to try, even his slaves. I know you are young, but what do you think of trying this?" He paused to see my reaction. My face was expressionless, but inside, my mind was racing. Ideas for the monument were already forming in my mind.

"Annabeth, you are one intelligent and determined young girl. If any of us can do this, you can," Chiron said. "So what do you say?"

"Yes." My answer sounded surprisingly confident for a twelve year old girl competing against Greece's top architects.

Chiron smiled, like he was expecting me to say this. "You will have to continue your regular cleaning duties. You will have to work on your design after you finish your work, but if your design is chosen, you will be rewarded."

I nodded and stood to leave, but Chiron stopped me. "Good luck Annabeth," he said, giving me a bright smile. "I believe in you."

* * *

"So what did Luke want?" Rachel asked later that day. We were in my room, me sketching some of my ideas for the monument and Rachel working on a clay bead. All the slaves have a necklace, and every year we add a bead to it. Rachel, being the most artistic of all the slaves, normally made the beads.

"He just took me to Chiron," I told her. "The king wants to build a monument for Princess Thalia and her soon-to-be-husband. Chiron wanted me to try making a design for it."

Rachel slumped down on my bed. "Just make sure it has windows," she joked. Ever since Prince Jason disappeared, the king had grown more strict about security. It was harder to get in and out of the castle. One way he had done this is by taking away most of the windows. All the slaves joked about working in the windowless castle.

Secretly, I wish I still had the window in my room. Life in the castle was fine, but I still wished that I had escaped while I still could. Though I had nothing, I would at least have a chance at finding my family and Kallie. I had made a promise to little Kallie after all.

"I'll put in a hundred windows and invite you to see it," I told her.

Rachel didn't have a chance to reply. Suddenly, the door slammed open and a very angry Thalia stormed in. "A stranger!" she yelled. "He's marrying me off to some stranger and I have absolutely no say in this!" Rachel and I sat silently. Thalia visited all the slaves, us and Luke especially since everyone else was much older, but she never stormed in my room screaming before.

She plopped down on my bed. "What if this prince turns out to be old? What if he's a boring prince that just drones on and on about politics? What if I hate him?" Her face was flushed with anger, and she sat with her eyes closed, breathing in and out to calm herself. In a softer voice, she added, "What if I don't want to marry."

"Princess," I said to her.

Thalia smiled at me, but it was a sad and weary smile. "How many times do I have to tell you Annabeth. It's _Thalia_, not _princess_. Don't call me mistress either."

"Thalia, he might turn out to be nice. Most princes that come to visit are," I said.

"Yeah," Thalia said. "And most of them are old." Thalia, the stubborn and strong princess, looked tired for once. She looked like a regular girl.

"I'll get you a glass of wine," Rachel said to Thalia. She ran out of the room, leaving the two of us alone.

"Annabeth," Thalia said. "Do you ever wish you were someone else? Somewhere else?"

"I don't know, my lady," I replied.

Thalia groaned. "Princess, mistress, my lady. Seriously Annabeth, don't call me that." Looking at me in the eye, she added, "I don't think of you as a slave girl. I think of you as my friend. Would you call Rachel 'my lady'?" I shook my head, a smile growing on my lips. The idea of Rachel being a proper lady was impossible to imagine. That would be stranger than Thalia being a proper princess!

"Yes, I have," I said. Thalia looked at me confused. "I've wished I was somewhere else, I mean. The castle life is good, but I wish I could find my family. At least find out if they're alive."

Thalia nodded. "I wish I could be out there searching for my brother as well, but how can I. I'm trapped in this place as much as you are."

I thought about what Thalia said. I had always thought of the princess as a powerful person, not as powerful as the king, queen, or prince, but powerful nevertheless. Looking at Thalia, I realized just how little power a princess has over what happens in her life. "Thalia, if I ever escape from here, I promise I'll try to find your brother," I said.

Thalia stared at me. Eventually, she replied, "And if I ever make it out of here, I promise I'll try to find your family." Holding onto my hands tightly, she said, "I believe one of us will make it out eventually. We can do this."

Grinning from ear to ear, I added, "I believe as well."

* * *

**Yes, Annabeth is a demigod. A bunch of people were asking, so I decided to put that in the beginning. And yes, I know Rachel and Annabeth didn't get along this well in most of the books, but that was mostly because of Percy and neither of them know Percy yet :)**


	5. Brave

**Sorry for taking so long to update! I hope this chapter makes up for the long wait. Thanks so much to all of you for reviewing. This will probably be my last update until maybe January. So happy holidays to all of you and your families! :)**

**This chapter is dedicated to my friend's cousin and everyone else killed in wars and UN peacekeeping missions. All these men and women are brave people.**

* * *

"Have you heard?" Rachel asked Luke, nearly jumping on him with excitement. "Princess Thalia! She's getting married to a prince, and Annabeth is designing their monument!" The princess had just left, and Luke had knocked on our door, only to get knocked over by an exceptionally enthusiastic Rachel.

Luke stood up quickly. "What?" he asked Rachel.

"The princess! The king's marrying her off to some prince! Annabeth is going to design a monument for them! Well, a bunch of other people are going to try, but her's will be the best. I know it." Rachel said.

Luke's face was expressionless. "The princess is marrying?" he whispered hoarsely Both Rachel and I nodded. He stared at Rachel for a moment, then said in a monotone voice, "That's good for her." He turned to leave, but I grabbed his arm.

"So what did you come here for?" I asked him.

He shook his head. "Nothing," he muttered, facing away from us. "I need to go now."

"Where?"

"Someplace important."

"Then can I go with you?" Luke looked at me questioningly. "Well, can I?" With a sigh, he nodded. I smiled and waved to Rachel. I ran out of the room, dragging Luke behind me. Luke started leading me down the hall.

"Now, where's this important place we're going to?" I asked once we were far from Rachel's earshot. Luke seemed to be mindlessly walking down the corridor.

"You know…" Luke said. "The place with… that stuff."

"Uh huh. Yeah, I know. That stuff is pretty important. Good thing we're going there, I wanted to check up on that stuff myself." When Luke didn't say anything in response, I said to him, "What is it really? What's bothering you?"

For a while, he was completely silent. I thought he wouldn't say anything and was about to pester him again when he spoke. "You're growing up Annabeth," Luke finally said.

"Don't change the topic."

"You really are growing up. Remember when we first met? You attacked Thalia and me with a hammer." Luke laughed. "Annabeth, you were one brave girl."

I couldn't resist, despite the situation. Eyebrows raised, I asked teasingly, "Were?"

He sighed, faking exasperation. I shoved him and he nearly fell over, but he was smiling. "You were, are, and always will be my brave Annabeth."

* * *

No matter how large the rooms in the castle are, it was still not a very smart idea to stuff all the castle residents all in one bedroom. The slaves, crammed together, whispered about why the king has summoned us to this room. The royal family stood in the centre.

We were in one of the many bedrooms kept for guests. It was a small and simple room, with just a bed and closet. It was perfect for visitors in need of a rest. It was not perfect for a gathering of the slaves.

Everyone had ideas about what King Zeus had called this gathering for. Maybe it was the wedding of Princess Thalia, a grand ball he had planned, or maybe something simple like the yearly beads.

"Rachel's finished the beads and has already given them to Chiron," I said to Silena, the nurse who cares for the princess. "Maybe the king wants to give them to us this year."

Silena nodded. "You're her best friend. Do you know what Rachel put on the beads this year?" Castle life is eventful. There are so many things that could be on the bead. Ever since Beckendorf, one of the strongest slaves, made it on the bead for saving the princess's life, many of the slaves have tried to do something heroic so their face may be on the bead someday.

Shaking my head, I said to her, "Rachel never shows anyone until the beads are revealed by Chiron. You know that. Only she knows what's on that bead. And Chiron of course."

More and more slaves squished into the room. People were shoving and yelling at each other to move over. Finally, the king decided all of the slaves were present. He cleared his throat and all the yelling died out.

"I assume you are all wondering what you are doing here," King Zeus said. Rachel, on the other side of the room, rolled her eyes and made a face at the king. I nearly laughed, when Silena elbowed me softly and motioned to pay attention to the king.

Only then did I realize the solemn look on his face. "I regret to say I bear bad news." No one made a sound. "The kingdom is at war." None of the slaves spoke. War rarely affected slaves, especially the royal slaves. We all were silent, waiting for the king to explain why he crammed us all into this tiny room to tell us this.

The king took a deep breath before he spoke again. What he said next shocked everyone. "All males in the kingdom, including those in this room, will be required to fight. You will be sent to the battlefield in three days."

Gasps echoed through the room, but no one moved. No one spoke. A boy, not much older than me, fainted.

Suddenly, the room erupted in chaos. Families screamed and cried for their sons, brothers, and fathers. Silena ran to Beckendorf. "No!" she screamed, burying her face in his shoulders. The two were supposed to be married in two months. The king was no longer even visible. He was fully engulfed in a crowd of frantic slaves.

The mother of the boy who fainted wrapped her arms around him and sobbed. "Not my baby!" she wailed. I stood there frozen, watching.

"Silence!" the king shouted. Just as suddenly as the screams started, they stopped. All eyes were on the king.

"I did not wish for this to happen," the king said. "I did not wish for war. Our relationship with the kingdom of King Hades has gotten worse. If you men do not fight, the people of our kingdom will perish.

"But you are all brave men. Fight for our land. Fight for the safety of the women and children back home. When you return, you will be heroes."

"_If_ they return," a woman behind me muttered.

"Now," the king said with an overly bright smile on his face, "this year's beads have been finished! Chiron will hand them to you as you exit. You are all now excused."

Groaning and moaning, knowing they couldn't change what was happening, the slaves slowly trudged out of the room. Soon, the crowd cleared enough for me to be able to see the rest of the royal family. The king and queen were deep in discussion and Thalia was staring off into the crowds. I followed her eyes to a pair of once bright blue eyes.

Luke. His eyes now held pain and despair. Dread filled my body as glimpses of what could happen flashed before me. He could get gravely injured, or…

I shook myself out of my thought. I couldn't think about that now. I raced towards Luke, nearly slamming into him. His arms enveloped me, nearly making me start sobbing. "Annabeth…" he said in a strangled voice. I looked up at his face. He was still trying to soak in what had just happened.

I couldn't stand seeing him like this. I gave him a quick kiss on his cheek. "I think you're the bravest person I know. You're my hero." Before he could say anything, I ran away, my face turning red as I thought about what I had just done.

Three days. That was all I had left with him. After that, who knew if I'd see him again? Every time we passed by each other, neither of us would say a word. It left me wondering, why did I even kiss him? It was a small kiss on the cheek, but because of it, we couldn't even talk to each other.

I kept telling myself I should talk to him while I still could. But it wasn't until the day he left we spoke to each other again. On that day, I decided to forget about what had happened, at least until he left. At least until I said goodbye.

It was a sunny day. The sunshine felt wrong. It shouldn't be sunny on that day of all days.

The women of the castle were rushing around, saying last minute goodbyes. Mothers and sisters cried for the men. The youngest children didn't even seem to realize they may never see their fathers and brothers again.

The men stood bravely through it all, gripping tightly onto their swords and spears. A few of the more favoured slaves had a shield, but most were cheap shields not large enough give the soldier much defense. A small group of archers stood at the very back of the group. They seemed much more confident than the others, feeling sure that they would be far from most of the danger.

They barely seemed like a competent army, but I knew that the villagers were worse. At least the king and queen could afford decent weapons and some bronze armour for the castle slaves.

The king's army was to walk to the sea, where three large warships were waiting to send them and the other village men to the island of King Hades. It was a nearby island, and it would only take them a few days to arrive there. It would only take a few days for the fighting to start.

I wove through the crowds, searching for Luke. To my irritation, there were far too many blonde haired, blue eyed men. Finally, I spotted him standing off to the side by himself.

"Luke!" I shouted, waving my arms in the air trying to get his attention. He turned around and a smile grew on his face when he saw me. I ran straight into his arms.

"I was afraid you wouldn't come," Luke said.

"I couldn't let you go without saying goodbye." After a few minutes of silence, I asked, "Did Thalia come to say goodbye?"

"She said her goodbyes yesterday. King Zeus wouldn't allow her or the Queen to come out today. Said it would be too dangerous."

He then gripped onto my shoulders and looked straight into my face. "Remember what I told you. You're my brave Annabeth, and no matter what happens, you always will be. Be brave while I'm gone Annabeth. Promise me you will." I was about to say I don't need to make a promise to be brave when I saw the serious, but desperate look in his eyes.

"I promise," I said. "And you'll always be the bravest person I know."

"I'm not brave. I'm terrified." Luke said it so calmly, I was certain he was lying about being terrified. But after taking a closer look, I could see the fear. I saw it in his eyes.

"You are brave," I insisted. "Being brave isn't about charging at your enemy with no fear at all. You can be scared. What makes you brave is that you know and accept that you're scared, but you're going to fight for our land anyway. You're fighting for the people who live here, including me. You'll always be my hero."

He watched me, shocked. "You've turned into some inspirational speaker or something," he said.

"Rachel said that too."

He hugged me again, and we stayed like that while more farewells were being said around us. I refused to think about what could happen and, breathing deeply to try to calm myself, focused on remembering everything about Luke that I could.

Finally, the dreaded moment came. King Zeus, in full battle armour and mounted on a white steed, yelled to his soldiers, "Onward to battle! May we all return home."

* * *

**It sort of seems like the story's going to be Lukabeth, but no worries. It's Percabeth, you guys will see soon :) Maybe around chapter 9ish Percy will join the story! So is there something special you want this holiday season? Tell me in your review :)**


	6. Dying

**January 3rd! Guess what today is? Guess right now!**

**If you guessed my birthday, you are correct! (Anyone who reads the author's notes in my House of Hades fic should have guessed correctly.) I am now 14 years old :) And it's ChildOfWisdom's birthday too! Happy birthday Veronica :) Tomorrow is Cadee C's birthday. Happy early birthday Cadee! **

**And no dedication because I can't think of one with the chapter title in it… **

**Anyway, enjoy this (really short, first chapter less than 2000 words) birthday chapter!**

* * *

_Malcolm_  
The_ Kingdom of Hades_

_The soldier watched his king with steely grey eyes. They were preparing for an invasion from the nearby kingdom of King Zeus. It would be the first battle of the war. King Zeus's kingdom was powerful, but the soldier was determined to defend his home with his life. After all, his home in the kingdom of King Hades was all he had left._

_A warship appeared at the horizon. As it approached the land, a volley of arrows flew toward the soldiers. The invasion had started._

_At that last minute before the bloodbath, the grey-eyed soldier thought of his sister. If he had been a better older brother, if he had been just slightly braver, she would still be with him. For the past five years, that thought had tormented him. His sister could have been one of the many girls crying and waving goodbye to the soldiers. She could have welcomed him home if he survived this war. Instead, she was either a slave or dead._

_A battle cry sounded around him, shaking him from his thought. Soldiers were rushing out of the warship onto the battlefield, spears and swords held high. _I'm doing this for Annabeth_, he thought to himself, and he charged.__The ground was soon covered in a blanket of blood and dead bodies. _

_A boy who looked less than half his age ran toward the soldier. The boy raised his sword and swung. The soldier easily blocked his blow and slashed at his arm. It wasn't a fatal injury, but the young boy gasped and fell to his knees, eyes clamped shut in pain. The soldier took this opportunity to run away before he would have to kill the boy._

_After that, everything was a blank. The soldier mindlessly slashed through crowds with his sword. Most were untrained young boys who were easy to defeat. It wasn't until he met the blonde man with a scar on his face that he actually feared for his life._

_The soldier ducked as a sword slashed at his head. He turned to see his attacker and was met by a pair of blue eyes. Again, the blue-eyed man slashed with his sword, but this time the soldier blocked with his own sword._

_"For Annabeth!" the grey-eyed soldier cried as he struck his attacker hard in the chest with his sword. The soldier watched as he fell backwards._

_"Annabeth…" the man with the scar on his face looked up at the soldier. "You know Annabeth." Then, with blood gushing from his many cuts, his blue eyes closed as he passed out._

* * *

The castle had lost all its life. All regular work had gone on with the slaves. Everyone did a bit extra to compensate with the missing male slaves. But the life was gone. The singing, laughing, and joking were gone. Even Rachel and I were silent and solemn as we worked. For the first time since we started mopping duty five years ago, we both remained dry the entire time.

A few weeks had passed since the men left for war. They would be fighting right at that moment. Some of them would even already be injured, or even dead. Luke could even be injured or dead.

Rachel and I swept the top floor together without saying a word, our actions robotic and our minds far away in the battlefield in King Hades's land.

It wasn't until Rachel accidentally knocked my mop from my hands that we spoke. "Sorry," she said, bending down to pick it up. She handed me back my mop and went back to sweeping, all without meeting my eyes once.

"Just stop," I whispered. Rachel looked at me curiously and I repeated what I had said, but louder this time. "Just stop," I said. "We all need to stop this. We're moping around looking half-dead. The King and the soldiers aren't out there fighting so we can mope around. They're fighting so we can _live_. You can't call this living. No one can."

At first, Rachel only stared. Then, a smile began to grow on her face, and she said, "Annabeth, since when did you become some inspirational speaker?"

"Since everyone became overworking zombies."

Laughing, Rachel said, "Well then, we've got to do something about that, don't we? We can't have overworking zombies running this place."

* * *

The next morning, the slaves woke up to find stones on the ground outside of their rooms arranged to form arrows. Not knowing what else to do, they followed the arrows to the front entrance. There, they were greeted by Rachel.

"Good morning!" she said, smiling brightly to everyone. "Please, step outside and enjoy!" Though they were confused, no one asked and did as she said. Rachel held the door open for them as they stepped outside.

I don't think anyone expected to see what they saw.

Rachel and I had tied old blankets together and painted on the word "Breakfast". It was almost illegible, but it served its purpose. Rachel and I had climbed up, holding one end each, and hung our creation between two trees, making a banner.

Underneath was a table we had pushed out from the dining room while everyone was asleep. With a bit of help from the castle chef, we filled the table with fruits, vegetables, bread, nuts, eggs, and everything else we could imagine. It was an entire feast.

"Annabeth?" Thalia said as she walked up to me with a disbelieving look on her face. She looked like she had just gotten out of bed. Rachel and I had left an arrow trail outside of her bedroom as well. "What is all this?"

"Breakfast," I said simply, pointing to the banner.

"Of course," Thalia laughed. After she left to get some food, Rachel snuck up behind me. "Are you sure this will work?" she asked. "The idea seems way too simple."

I looked over at the food table. People were chatting and laughing, just like we wanted them to. They were alive again. "There's nothing wrong with simplicity. Sometimes, you just have to stick with what's simple."

"True," Rachel said smiling. "Come on! Let's get some food before everyone else takes it all!" She grabbed my hand and ran to the food, dragging me behind her.

Soon, people started going back in for work. Rachel and I stayed outside the longest to clean up. At least, we were cleaning at first.

"Rachel," I said, "can you bring in the water? I'll get the cups."

"Sure," she replied. I started collecting all the cups while Rachel grabbed the bucket of water and started dragging it inside. "Hey Annabeth," she said.

"What is it?" I spun around to see a gleeful smirk on Rachel's face. "Oh no."

"Oh yeah. Duck!" Suddenly, Rachel ran up to me and dumped the entire bucket all over me. I screamed and pelted her with whatever I could grab from the table. Mostly pomegranate seeds.

"Remember when you said you wanted our uniforms to be red and gold to match our hair because they're so ugly?" I asked Rachel. She nodded, and I added, "Well I made your uniform red. You're welcome." Rachel looked down at her uniform, stained with pomegranate juice. I took the opportunity to throw a grape at her head, making her jump.

"You'll pay for that!" she screamed, grabbing a handful of fruit.

When I was out of pomegranate seeds, I grabbed a hard-boiled egg. "Watch out!" I screamed at Rachel as I threw it at her. She ducked, and the egg hit the person behind her. Princess Thalia.

"Hey you two- Whoa!" The princess stumbled backwards as the egg hit her in the face. I gasped and ran forward. Rachel's face grew completely pale, and her eyes were wide with shock.

"I'm so sorry Princess," I said, picking up the egg. "Please forgive me. I didn't mean to throw the egg at you. It was an accident!"

"Don't worry Annabeth. At least it wasn't raw," Thalia said with a grin on her face. "And didn't I tell you to stop calling me Princess?"

I nodded. "I am so sorry Princess."

Thalia sighed and said, "Yeah, I guess we'll have to work on that." Her smile disappeared and left a grim expression on her face. The Princess looked like she needed a big hug.

"So what are you doing back out here?" Rachel asked Thalia.

"Well, something happened that I figured you two should know about." Thalia wiped a tear from her eye. Rachel and I pretended we didn't notice. "We received the list of the injured, dead, and dying today." I held my breath as I waited for Thalia to mention Luke. He couldn't be on any of those three lists. He just couldn't. Thalia was still and silent, unable to say more.

I couldn't help myself. "Is Luke alright?" I asked.

"Annabeth," Thalia finally said after taking a deep breath, "Luke is dying."

* * *

**What do you guys think of this chapter? And don't forget… It would make this birthday girl really really happy if you left a review :)**


	7. Chaos

**Hey guys! Thanks so much for all the reviews. I finally reached 100! In case you're wondering, AthenaGrayEyes98 left the 100th review. Thank you :) I hope this chapter makes up for the really short chapter 6. At least this one's well over 2000 words, right?**

**No dedication again, because how am I supposed to come up with one that has the word _chaos_?**

* * *

_Kallie  
The City-State of Athens_

_She was swimming. The ocean waves were gentle, and it took no effort at all to float. It was blissful. She would be content with floating around like this for eternity. Then, something made her look to the coast._

_There was a small village. It was an ordinary place. The villagers were smiling as they went about their lives. Watching the people smile put a smile on her face as well._

_Suddenly, the village erupted into flames. It was complete chaos. Billows of smoke rose from the burning buildings. The villagers screamed. She screamed. The silver owl that was flying towards her screamed._

_Then, she woke up._

_"Are you okay?" the boy beside her bed asked. It was still dark, and she couldn't tell which one of the twins he was. All she could see was a slight gleam of moonlight shining on his blonde hair and his grey eyes watching me with concern. "You were screaming. I came to wake you before Daddy heard."_

_She assured him that she was fine. She said it was just a nightmare. The boy nodded and went back to his own bed. Only when she was alone did she allow herself to think about her dream._

_She never remembered her dreams, but this one replayed itself over and over in her mind. It was so vivid. So real. She could remember every single detail. And she recognized the village._

_The village, it was her home. The fire had actually happened. She had dreamt about her living nightmare five years ago. The only thing that never actually happened was the silver owl flying towards her. And the swimming of course. She couldn't swim._

_After her village had been destroyed, she had been taken captive. Thinking back, the ship wasn't too bad. At least on the ship I had someone to take care of me. At least I had a friend._

_What happened after though, was bad. Real bad. Worse than the village burning or being trapped on the ship. She was sent to live with the mad man._

_Dionysus was his name. She had thought the pirates on the ship had been abusive. On the ship, she barely suffered from abuse. Dionysus had given her a new higher standard of what counted as actual pain. She was half dead when she was finally sold._

_She felt like she would never be able to fall asleep after that dream. What made her most curious was the silver owl. Just those two words: silver owl, sparked a memory from her past. She grasped at that memory, but it wouldn't come to her. But after lying in bed, she grew tired again and, forgetting all about her dream, fell asleep._

_A few hours later, the slave girl shot up from her bed. She remembered. Annabeth's silver owl necklace. And she remembered one more thing: Annabeth promised to find her._

* * *

Dying. Not dead, but not exactly alive either. Luke was dying.

I looked up at Thalia. She was gripping onto the table as if she would collapse if she let go. She looked back at me with broken blue eyes. "Annabeth," she whispered, her hand outstretched as she stroked my hair.

Shaking my head, I brushed her hand off. I shoved aside Rachel and Thalia and ran. I ran blindly like a wild and frightened animal, not knowing where I was going. I only knew I had to escape.

When I couldn't run any longer, I collapsed. Finally, far from anyone else, I let myself think.

The letter must have taken weeks to get here. Weeks ago, Luke was dying. The dying almost never survived. It only took a day or two. Then they were gone forever.

I felt myself going insane. _Why did life have to be so confusing? Why did there have to be death? What was the point of living if we're all going to die eventually?_ These questions swarmed around in my head, leaving me more confused than before. I kept whispering to myself, "Not Luke, he just can't be dead. He can't be."

My mind subconsciously thought back to the day I last saw Luke. _R_e_member what I told you_, he had said to me with a desperate look in his eyes. Y_ou're my brave Annabeth, and no matter what happens, you always will be. Be brave while I'm gone Annabeth. Promise me you will._

I had promised, and told him he would always be my hero. That seemed like a million years ago.

A lone tear streaked down my face. Annoyed, I clamped my eyes shut, trying to hold back my tears and stifle the sobs building up inside. "Stop it," I commanded myself in a hushed tone. "Crying won't get you anywhere. Crying won't save Luke. You don't even know for sure that he's dead."

I just lay there for a while, leaning against a tree, curled up in a ball as I hugged my knees as close to me as possible. I tried desperately to organize my mess of thoughts.

I barely noticed Rachel as she came up to me and sat down. I barely noticed as she wrapped her arms around me, whispering, "He'll be alright Annabeth. He'll be alright."

* * *

"Where was she," Thalia asked. Rachel had taken me back to the castle into Thalia's room after she had found me.

"The edge of the village, by the orchard." Rachel and Thalia were talking calmly, as if I wasn't even there, as if Luke was perfectly fine. Everything seemed almost normal, like nothing had happened. The only sign showing that Luke really was dying were Thalia's bloodshot eyes.

"Annabeth, you ran that far?" Thalia asked. She and Rachel waited for me to answer. They didn't get one.

I stood up, and offered a hand to Rachel. "We should get back to work," I said.

"It's alright if you take a break today," Thalia said, but I shook my head.

"We should get back to work," I repeated. As I was leaving, I noticed Rachel wasn't following me. I turned and saw her watching me strangely. "What is it?" I asked her.

It took her a while to answer. "You've become an overworking zombie," she finally said.

I wasn't the only overworking zombie. The lists took away all the happiness from the castle slaves. Rachel and I were silent as we worked. Everyone waited for the next lists. The lists would show if our prayers and offerings have been heard by the gods. The lists would show me Luke's fate.

Weeks went by. People starting forgetting about the war. It was so far away after all. It was only the lists that brought the war home. Without the lists, the castle had slowly become more and more alive.

Soon, Rachel and I were talking while we worked. It didn't take long for the talking to grow into the laughing and fooling around we used to do.

"I am your Queen. Fetch my breakfast you worthless maid!" Rachel screamed at me in a snobby voice.

"How come you get to be the Queen," I whined.

"Because I'm better than you, and I-" she cut herself off with a scream as I playfully whacked her on the head with my mop.

"You look good with mop hair," I said, laughing my head off.

"I look good with any hair." She grabbed my mop and held it on her head like a hat. She posed, making me laugh even harder.

"Rachel, can I show you something?" I asked when we both finished laughing. She nodded, and I took out the silver owl necklace that I had kept tucked in my tunic all these years. "My dad gave it to me," I told her. "The day I was captured by the pirates, he gave me this necklace and told me it would protect me."

I let Rachel finger the silver owl. I waited for her reaction. "It's beautiful," she finally said. "Your dad must have been pretty cool." She looked up from the silver owl necklace and smiled at me. I smiled back, feeling like that day was one of the best I've ever had. And it was one of the best. At least it was then.

That evening, Rachel and I was lying down on the ground, enjoying our dinner. We were in the hall with all the servants' bedrooms. At the end of the hall, if you turned left, you could find Princess Thalia's room.

"I wonder what the soldiers are doing right now," Rachel said as we ate. That was the first time any of the castle slaves mentioned the war since the Lists had come. That's what the three lists, those injured, dying, and dead, were called by the castle inhabitants. They were simply known as _the Lists_.

"I don't know." I had thought of Luke less and less often now. I had started to accept what Rachel had assured me, that he'd be back at the castle before I know it. It had been weeks since the last time the Lists had come. Surely he would have recovered.

Suddenly, Silena came racing up the stairs. I was about to say something to her when she bent down in front of us and blew out our candle. She looked around frantically. Possibly looking for more candles to blow out.

"Silena!" Rachel said as Silena ran to the window to shut the blinds. "What are you doing?"

Silena blew out the last candle. We were plunged into complete darkness. Silena put an arm around each of us. "I don't think now is the best time to finish your dinner," she said in a hushed tone.

"What's happening?" I whispered. Silena was rushing around so quickly before that I had only caught a glimpse of her face. The normally calm girl was pale and wide-eyed. She was scared.

There was a long silence before she answered, as if she was deciding on how much to tell us. The silence scared me more than her answer. "I'm not certain," she finally said. "All I know is that there is a ship approaching the island. It bears the flag of King Hades."

The Queen had said this could happen. We were at war, and an invasion wasn't unlikely. But no one had paid any attention to the warning. An invasion didn't feel real back then. Only as we waited in the darkness did the invasion feel real. The castle, in just a few minutes, had gone completely silent. All the castle residents were on lockdown.

After a few minutes, the hiding and waiting had begun to seem slightly pointless. Nothing was happening. Rachel had apparently been thinking the same thing. "Nothing's happening," she said.

Silena hushed her. "The ship might still be approaching. Maybe-"

A volley of arrows crashed through the window. They struck the wall right above our heads. Silena, screaming, pushed us further down the hall. The people outside were shouting. I wasn't sure if it was the villagers or the invaders. I had to see outside.

Despite Silena and Rachel screaming at me to back away, I crawled over to the window. I peeked out. I wasn't prepared for what I saw. I never could have been.

History repeats itself. I don't know where I've heard that saying before. All I knew was that it was happening to me. Outside the window, I saw what I had seen five years ago. Mass chaos.

Villagers ran and screamed, holding onto their children. For the first time in a long time, I saw men. I had been hoping for this for a long time. I was just hoping it would be our own men, not the strangers who were chasing the women and children with weapons in their hands. Another volley of arrows shot up at me. I dodged as soon as I saw. One of the arrows whistled past, right above my head. I quickly looked back out the window.

The streets. I couldn't even see the streets. Where the ground wasn't covered by dead bodies and debris, it was covered with blood. I could smell the rusty scent of blood from up here.

I backed away from the window, knees weak after seeing what I had seen outside. Every breath made my stomach turn and my head hurt. Rachel, curious as I was, had crawled to the window and was looking out. Her face was frozen in a glassy stare of horror. She fell backwards and scurried away from the window as I had.

"What's happening?" Rachel wailed, no longer whispering like we were before. There was no point in hiding now.

What scared me most at that moment wasn't the massacre outside. It was Silena's voice. Before, she was attempting to sound calm, brave, levelheaded, for Rachel and me. Now, I heard none of that. I only heard fear. "Our men invaded their land. Now they're invading ours."

The ground vibrated slightly. I could tell Rachel and Silena had felt it too. "What is that," Silena whispered.

She soon got her answer. A crash from downstairs made us race to the stairs to peer down at what was happening. It was the door that caused the crash. The magnificent double doors that had been the entrance to the castle were knocked to the ground. One was broken in half.

Men were streaming in. It was the castle after all. This would have been one of the first places they saw when they approached the island, and the first place they completely obliterated.

The screams started. Statues and everything else that decorated the castle were smashed to the ground. I shuddered as I thought to myself, _I know the people being attacked downstairs. Some of them were my friends_. It was worse than seeing the bloodbath from the window.

"When I tell you to, run downstairs and straight out the door," Silena whispered to us. "They'll come up here soon. You two need to risk escaping. It'll be your only chance."

"What about you?" I asked, noticing how she was using _you two_ and _your_.

"I'll be right behind you," she assured me. "Now… go!"

Silena gave us a quick shove as Rachel and I sped down the stairs. The men obviously weren't expecting us, and those who saw us stood frozen, shocked. No one attacked until we were gone.

"Where do we go now?" I shrugged, not knowing any more than Rachel did. Suddenly, an idea came to me.

I dragged Rachel away from the mass of escaping villagers so that we wouldn't get trampled. "Lie down!" I shouted over the stampede beside us. "Play dead! No one will kill us then."

Rachel nodded. But before she lay down on the ground, she said, "The ground is covered in blood. It looks, smells, and feels disgusting."

I gaped at her. "Would you rather get killed?" I screamed at her. That got her to lie down pretty quick. I lay down beside her. The pool of blood was still warm. A cold feeling filled me as I lay there, but it took me a while to figure out what was wrong. Something was missing.

Not _something_, I realized. _Someone_.

"Where's Silena?" I whispered to Rachel. "She should have escaped by now."

"Quiet," she hissed. She closed her eyes and slowed her breathing. Right before I did the same, I saw what Rachel had seen. A man had dragged out the bodies all those killed in the castle. Silena's body had been thrown near the top of the pile. She had gotten stabbed in the stomach. A knife was still sticking out.

I heard a choked sob from beside me. A tear fell from Rachel's eyes. I risked moving closer to her. "She gave her life to help us," I said, feeling like I needed to say something. What Silena had done shocked us both. Before the invasion, we had barely even talked to her. She was just another one of the many castle slaves we knew the name of, but weren't friends with.

Rachel nodded. "She was a hero."

* * *

**Too much dying? Don't worry, Silena and possibly Luke will be the only ones. **

**This will probably be my last update in a while. Sorry, but exams are coming up. Really, I'd much rather be working on my stories than studying day and night for exams. Why wouldn't I? But as soon as exams are over, I promise I'll update!**


	8. Dependence

**Hey everyone :) It's been almost two weeks since I last updated... Sorry about that. And I'll update the House of Hades as soon as I can. It's just right now, I find the Silver Owl a lot easier to write (I know exactly what's going to happen in the next chapter, I'm just having trouble writing it).**

**Two days ago, I posted the first one shot in _Definition of Percabeth_, a series of Percabeth one shots. It's called _Define Perfection_. Go read it, I promise it's good!**

**This chapter is dedicated to all of my friends. Sure, we're all independent people, but we depend on each other like Rachel and Annabeth do in this chapter. I love you all!**

* * *

I didn't dare open my eyes until I heard only silence. I had to be sure Rachel and I were alone.

Sitting up, I nudged Rachel. "Everyone's gone now," I said.

Rachel opened her eyes and looked around. "Oh, Annabeth," Rachel whispered as we took in our surroundings. Our beloved home, bustling with life just this morning, was a ghost town. There wasn't a single building intact. Doors were smashed to the ground, windows were broken, and some houses had completely fallen to the ground. And the blood. The blood was everywhere. On the buildings, the streets, and all over us.

"Silena," Rachel said, pointing to the pile of bodies by the front door of the castle. Sure enough, Silena's body was right where the soldier left her. "She gave her life to save us. We can't just leave her like that."

"You're right." I stood up and offered a hand to Rachel. Together, holding hands, we walked towards her.

Silena's funeral was short. Nothing special. I closed her beautiful eyes, knowing it would be the last time I would ever see eyes so blue. Rachel brushed the tangles in her hair and did her best to wash off any evidence of the attack.

"I wonder what Beckendorf is doing," Rachel said as we worked. Rachel's words were like a punch to my stomach. I hadn't even thought of Beckendorf. Him and Silena were planning to get married as soon as he got back from the war.

"I hope he's dead."

Rachel gaped at me. "How could you say that?" she exclaimed. "He deserves to live."

I sighed, not knowing how to explain my thoughts. "He deserves to be with Silena. Life is painful when you've lost those you love. Death would be bliss. Beckendorf and Silena will be happy in Elysium. At least they'll have each other."

After that, Rachel and I were silent as we worked. I could tell she was thinking about what I had said.

The burial was done quickly. I fashioned a grave marking out of a chunk of wood. Right before we buried Silena's body, Rachel gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. "Thank you for saving us." I did the same, and we finished the burial. That was the last we saw of Silena.

"Her grave marking looks ugly," Rachel said once we finished.

"Death is ugly," I said.

Rachel stared at me strangely. "But ten minutes ago, you said death would be bliss."

"Bliss can be ugly." I motioned to all the other bodies. "Does this look pretty to you?"

"No," Rachel agreed. "But Silena deserves prettier than this old lump of wood. There's a meadow over that hill. Let's at least go and bring some flowers to plant here."

The flowers would only mask the truth. Silena was dead, and no amount of flowers would change that. But I kept that thought to myself and nodded. "Let's go."

* * *

A lone tear streaked down my face. Annoyed, I clamped my eyes shut, trying to hold back my tears and stifle the sobs building up inside. "Stop it," I commanded, whispering to myself so Rachel wouldn't hear. "Crying won't get you anywhere."

Eyes still closed, I tried to ignore my growling stomach. Hunger, grabbing at the insides of my body, was a constant reminder that I haven't eaten since right before the attack on the island.

For the past two days, Rachel and I had searched all the houses and shops, hoping to find some food that the soldiers left behind. We found nothing. The food, like the villagers, had disappeared.

Unable to sleep, I walked over to the beach and sat down, leaving a sleeping Rachel behind me. I ignored the bodies, knowing they won't be any help to my sleeplessness, and focused only on the waves.

The steady, rhythmic crashing of the waves onto the sand felt oddly soothing. I never liked being at the ocean. The waves brought back the nightmares that had plagued me all these years: the pirate invasion, the boy that jumped off the rowboat to escape, losing my family.

Screaming. That's how the dream always started. My dad was putting my necklace around my neck when the screaming started.

_I clung onto my dad as the chaos continued outside. He just kept whispering in my ear, 'The necklace will protect you. I know it will.' Suddenly, the door collapsed. I peered outside. Bodies, covered in blood, covered every inch of the streets. Everyone was dead, but the screaming continued. Right in front of me was Malcolm's body. _

_I turned around, wanting to run into my dad's strong arms and block out everything else. But when I turned, I was met with a corpse stabbed right in the stomach. My dad. _

That was always when I woke up. Sometimes, I would wake up screaming. I couldn't stop. I couldn't calm down. I would think that I was still dreaming, and the screams were coming from right outside my room.

I shook the nightmare out of my thoughts, and went back to watching the waves. These waves were different. They didn't bring back the nightmares, they washed them away. The waves were cleansing the blood-stained sand.

I didn't even notice Rachel was there until she spoke. "The stars look beautiful," she said, sitting down beside me. She was right. The stars were out, pin-pricks of light in the dark blanket of the night sky.

Suddenly, Rachel stood up and pointed to the horizon. "What's that?" she asked.

I squinted at the direction she pointed until I saw what she was pointing to. A bright light was shining, but it wasn't a star. Stars don't move. Stars don't shout. Stars aren't in the ocean.

"It's a ship," I whispered. One look at Rachel told me she was thinking the exact same thing I was. _Hide_.

The ship was approaching quickly. I didn't have to see it to know. There were men on that ship, shouting like the pirates were five years ago. We didn't have much longer to find a good hiding place.

"Faster!" Rachel cried. The ship had reached land. It wouldn't take long for them to find us. We ran blindly through the darkness of the night, pumping our arms furiously. I couldn't see the light of the stars anymore. My lungs felt like they would burst, but fear kept me going.

"Annabeth!" I spun around to see Rachel sprawled on the ground, clutching her ankle. I ran back toward her, but she pointed to the bakery. "Go hide," she managed to say. Her eyes were squeezed shut in pain.

"Rachel, come on!" I pulled at her arms desperately, willing for her to stand up. "It's only a few steps, you can do it!" When it became clear that she wasn't standing up, I bent down and wrapped my arms around her. "I'll carry you," I said.

Rachel shook her head. "I'm slowing you down, just go hide," she whispered. "They're coming. Please Annabeth, they might even be coming to help."

"Then why do you want me to hide?" I whispered. The footsteps were becoming louder. They were coming.

"Just in case," she said. She winced as she tried to move her leg. "Just go. Please?" she begged.

Reluctantly, I stepped into the bakery. I turned back around and said, "If they hurt you, I'm coming out. Okay?" I closed the door as soon as soon as I saw Rachel nodding. I ran to the window and peered outside, waiting to see what would happen.

A group of men holding lanterns appeared. I scanned them for weapons. Each of them had a single sword or spear, but they didn't seem like they were going to use them. The approached Rachel, who watched wide-eyed.

"What is your name?" one of them asked. He appeared to be the leader of the group.

"Rachel." The men groaned, and started to leave when their leader stopped them.

"Do you know the whereabouts of Princess Thalia?" he asked her. Rachel shook her head, making the other men groan again.

Suddenly, Rachel sat up. She said something to the man that I couldn't hear and the man smiled. He looked straight at me. I ducked, stepping away from the window, but I knew it was too late. He was coming inside.

_Have some trust in Rachel_, I told myself. _She knew what she was doing when he led me here_. _She would never betray me_.

The doorknob rattled for a few seconds before opening. The man I saw talking to Rachel outside stepped inside. When he saw me, he beckoned to me to come to him. Thoughts raced in my head as I wondered what he wanted to me. I would have never in a million years have guessed what he was about to ask me.

"Are you Princess Thalia?"

Behind the man, I saw Rachel bobbing her head up and down. _Say yes_, she mouthed. Hesitantly, I nodded. The men starting cheering and shouting about getting to go home again.

The man bowed down before me, and all the other men started to do the same. I gave Rachel the most confused look I could, and she mouthed, _I'll explain later_.

"Come with us," the man said as he stood up. "You will be our Queen."

Again, Rachel nodded her head. "Okay," I said, taking the hand that he offered me.

"Sir," one of the other men said, "what do we do about this girl?"

"Leave her." The man started dragging me away, and everyone else followed.

I yanked my hand away from him. "No!" I screamed at him, running back to Rachel. When I noticed what I had just done, I stammered, "Rachel… She's my, uh…" I looked to Rachel to come up with an explanation.

"Slave," she said. "I'm her slave." I nodded eagerly in agreement.

The man looked uncertain about what to do. "Are you sure you want to bring her with you, my lady?" he asked me. "We can offer you many more slaves back at our kingdom. This one appears to be crippled."

I shook my head stubbornly. "I want Rachel. Only Rachel."

He sighed, and got someone to carry Rachel. We were led through the deserted village to their ship and were given a room to share together. That night, as the ship sailed away from the island, I begged Rachel for answers.

"You know that prince that Princess Thalia was supposed to marry?" Rachel asked me. I nodded, remembering the time Thalia had told us about the marriage and the monument I was supposed to have designed.

"Well these people are from his kingdom. They were told to find Princess Thalia, if she was alive, and bring her back. They were only supposed to bring her though. Apparently, the prince still has to marry her. That way, their kingdom can expand onto our island."

I stared at her. "How do you know all this?" I asked.

She shrugged and said, "I heard the men talking."

I leaned back into my bed and groaned. "So now I have to marry a prince? What if I hate him? What if he's old, ugly, cranky, and doesn't like me? What if-"

Rachel's laughing cut me off. I glared at her until she calmed down enough to say, "You sound just like Thalia." I thought back to when Thalia had said words very similar to mine, making me smile.

"Sorry," Rachel said. "But I didn't know what else to do. They already knew my name was Rachel and you were our only hope of getting off the island." She looked at me right in my eyes and added, "I'm really sorry. I hope you're not mad at me."

I shook my head and made some space on my bed. Rachel climbed out of her blankets and lied down beside me. "I'm not mad," I said. "Just stay with me. I don't want to be alone in the new kingdom. I need you."

Back on King Zeus's island, though we shared rooms, we never shared beds before. But on that night, we didn't give it a second thought. For the first time in five years, I slept with no nightmares.

* * *

**What did you guys think of that chapter? Who do you think the prince is (it's pretty obvious)? Will anyone find out the truth of Annabeth's identity?**

**Make me happy by leaving a review. I love getting them :)**


	9. Home

**This is the shortest chapter ever. Even the short chapter I posted on my birthday was longer than this. The next chapter will be way longer though, I promise! ****This chapter's pretty boring too, except maybe the beginning.**

**This dedication has nothing to do with the chapter title, but this dedication goes to my friend xoNessa01. She's new to fanfiction, but she's been reading this story since the beginning! Nessa, you're an awesome friend :)**

* * *

_Malcolm  
The Kingdom of Hades_

_The grey-eyed soldier panicked. He picked up the dying body in front of him and sprinted as far as he could away from the battlefield. Some people tried to attack him, but no one bothered chasing after him when there were much closer enemies willing to fight around._

_Putting the body down beside him, he slouched down, hidden from the battle by the gentle slope of the rolling hills. The man was waking up. The soldier sighed in relief. The man, the strange man who somehow knew his sister, couldn't die. At least not yet._

_To the man he nearly killed, he whispered, "How do you know Annabeth?"_

_The man merely smiled and stated, "You look like her."_

_"Just answer my question," the soldier said, getting slightly frustrated. He was desperate to know where his sister was. He needed to know if she was alive._

_The man smiled, getting a faraway look in his eyes. "We worked together as slaves in the castle of King Zeus. She's a maid." The man closed his eyes in pain, gasping as he clutched the wound on his chest. "If you see her again," the man said, "tell her I love her. She was like a little sister to me."_

_The young soldier was trying to soak in the new information he had just been given about his sister. She was alive. He nodded at the dying man's words, barely understanding him._

_"You'll tell her, right? Tell her that I love her, and that she was like a little sister to me," the man repeated his words as firmly as he could. "My name is Luke."_

_The soldier stared at the man. "You trust me with your message and your name? We just met. We're enemies. Why?"_

_The man name Luke nodded. "I trust you. I already told you why," he said. "You look like her." His eyes closed and his face scrunched up in pain. He moaned, and continued. "She said she had a brother who she lost a few years ago. You're Malcolm, aren't you?"_

_That was days ago._

_The warships were rapidly approaching the island. The captain barked out instructions for the warriors to follow: take anything valuable and don't be afraid to kill. One soldier, however, planned to follow his own instructions._

_Find his sister._

* * *

Yanking on the cloth, I wrapped it one more time around Rachel's ankle. I was no doctor. I had no idea how to treat it, or even what was wrong with it. I did the only thing I knew how to do when it came to injuries: bandaging it.

"This will have to do," I said.

Rachel stared down at her foot. Her hair, an unruly cloud of fiery red curls, fell forward, covering her face. "It looks fine, Annabeth," she said, tucking her hair behind her ear. "Thanks."

The ship's captain, the one that had found Rachel and me last night, had invited us to breakfast, but we had insisted on eating by ourselves in our room. We needed to talk without anyone else around.

I sat down beside Rachel on her bed. "What are we going to do about this whole 'Princess Thalia' thing? I don't know anything about being a princess. I can't act like one, I can't talk like one, I just can't be a princess. Our secret will be revealed in days! Maybe even a few hours!" Sighing, I fell backwards, lying on the bed. "Rachel, what are we going to do?"

"Sit up," Rachel said. I did as she said, and she added, "Princess Thalia always sits up straight. Well, when she's not around us. You know, sometimes I worry about the effect we had on her. Because of us, she slouches, she burps, she yells, she runs around the village like she's crazy, and does everything else a princess shouldn't do."

I thought back to the day. Rachel and I were running around the village like we were crazy. What else would we be doing? It was a perfect day, not too hot or too cold. Those days when it's perfect for playing outside. Princess Thalia was running an errand for the Queen, and we had crashed into her. Soon, Thalia had forgotten all about her errand and was running around with us, screaming maniacally.

Slowly, I started to smile at the memory. Rachel beamed when she saw. "Now there's the smile I was looking for. Annabeth, we'll be alright. We'll have each other to watch our backs. We're best friends."

I gripped onto Rachel's hands, squeezing them encouragingly. "Forever and always."

Rachel's smile started to disappear, and was replaced by a frown. "What's wrong?" I asked.

"What do you think happened to Thalia?" Thoughts of Thalia's body, dripping with blood, entered my mind. Even if she avoided the wrath of the warriors, she would be dying of starvation.

Neither of us could muster up enough bravery to voice our fears. Rachel groaned and finally said, "I wish we looked for her. She could be alive, stranded on the island. If not… at least we could have given her a burial. We did it for Silena."

I nodded in agreement. "I wish none of this ever happened." For a while, we just sat there, silent and holding each other's hands. "But," I said, "wishing isn't going to get us anywhere. The captain probably already doubts I'm the princess. I'm doing a horrible job of acting like one right now."

Rachel gave me a wan smile, and stroked my hair. It's what she had always done to comfort me. "Annabeth, they understand that they have to give Thalia some time to grieve."

I returned her smile. "I'm glad I have you with me."

* * *

After what seemed like an eternity of sailing, a green dot appeared on the horizon. As Rachel and I watched from the deck, the dot soon grew to become an entire island. Eventually, we could see individual houses, but the first landmark we saw was the castle.

"That's going to be our new home," Rachel said, pointing. The stone castle loomed over the entire village. "It looks so big," she marveled, obviously impressed. I had to admit, it was an architectural masterpiece.

But it wasn't home. It never would be.

"I'll be right back," I said to Rachel. She nodded slightly, still mesmerized by the approaching castle. I ran through the rows of oarsmen to the small cabin that Rachel and I had shared during the trip. The entire time, my hands were wrapped around the silver owl dangling from my neck.

_"Will this really protect me?"_

The five words replayed themselves over and over again in my head. They were the last words I ever said to him.

_"Your mother gave me this right before she left. She told me, 'Give it to her when the time is right. It will help her one day.' I asked her how I would know what time is right, and she told me I would just know."_

_"Will this really protect me?"_ The five final words.

_"I promise it will. I love you my little Annabeth."_

I promised Luke I would be brave. I had to be strong. No tears. Annabeth Chase does not cry.

_"Malcolm, take Annabeth into the forest and hide. They won't find you there. I'll get your mother and the twins. We'll find you, okay? Now go! Promise not to come back for us!"_

"Daddy..." I managed to choke out. Slamming the door shut, I crumpled to the floor in tears. _Daddy, I miss you_.

"Help me." Stroking the owl on my necklace, I whispered, "Daddy, please help me. I need you."

* * *

**Did you guys like the chapter (despite the shortness of it)? What do you think is going to happen to Malcolm and Annabeth?**

**Review :)**


	10. Simplicity

**This chapter isn't the most eventful, but I don't think it's too bad. Plus, it has some Percabeth. Yes, Percy is going to make his appearance! I hope this chapter makes up for not updating in nearly 3 weeks… Yeah, I'm really sorry about that.**

**For those of you that aren't reading _Definition of Percabeth_, read it! Please? It would make me so happy to have people read my one shots :) There are 3 so far: Define Perfection, Define Fate, and Define Strength. Personally, I think Define Fate is the best. Tell me which one you like!**

**Just letting you guys know, for those of you that were reading my _House of Hades_ fic, PercabethForever211 has agreed to continue it! Thank you so much PercabethForever211 :) You're awesome! Because of that, I'll dedicate this chapter to you.**

* * *

Life. It was everywhere. It was in the bustling market streets, the laughter coming from the children, laundry hanging by white brick houses, the warm smell of the baking bread. Everywhere. It was etched into the smiles on people's faces.

Everywhere I looked, there it was. Life.

"The people here look so happy," I whispered to Rachel. She had a big grin on her face as well. It was almost like it was a law. Everyone on this island must smile like idiots.

"Look at all that food!" She pointed eagerly to a market stall. Piles of fruit were stacked on a table forming a pyramid. "Look at all those dresses!" We passed by another stall, this one having an entire rainbow of clothes. "Look at all those necklaces!" I sighed, striding ahead of her. This was going to be a _long_ trip.

At first, I wasn't afraid to let my annoyance show. There wasn't a single person there I hadn't scowled at yet. Rachel stopped that though, with a quick nudge. I didn't look at her face, but I knew what her eyes would tell me.

_A Princess must always be kind._

Before we left the ship, Rachel had drilled into my head everything that a Princess must or must not do. It took a good two hours for her to recite her entire list of rules.

"Excuse me," I said to the captain. "How long of a walk will this be?"

"Are you getting tired Princess? We can get someone to carry you if you'd like. Maybe-"

"No!" I interrupted. "I'm walking." The captain nodded, looking at me uncertainly for a while. Too late, I realized my mistake. I wasn't Annabeth, the servant girl. I was the Princess.

_A Princess must always be polite._

"Sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt," I said.

"Don't worry Princess." The captain smiled warmly at me. "You must be tired, and you've been through quite the ordeal." He gestured at the approaching stone castle. "We're almost here."

I nodded, walking alongside him. It's not that I was tired of walking with Rachel. She was still my best friend and always would be. But the captain knew how to be silent, and silence was all I wanted.

Rachel was busy pointing out the horses to some brown-eyed sailor anyway.

"What's the prince like?" I asked the captain hesitantly. I missed the silence, but I needed to know what I was getting myself into.

"Very nice. You'll make a very good Queen for him," he said. It was clear he wasn't going to say anything else.

We left the market behind us and walked onto an endless field of emerald green grass. The field, like the rest of the island, was alive. Even the grass we trampled on, no matter how hard I stomped, sprung back up again.

I scanned the field over. All green.

Sighing, I looked down at my feet. And there it was. Yellow grass. I bent down and picked it. The captain, once again, gave me a confused look, but I gave him a smile and he turned away. I was pretty sure there was no Princess rule against picking up dead grass.

Opening my fist, I stared at my prize.

It was proof.

There was something on this island not alive.

* * *

The palace garden was silent. It definitely wasn't empty though. It was filled to the brim with flowers of all sizes and colours. I crouched down, smiling at some red flowers.

Fingering a random flower gently, I thought about my new home. It was nice. Everyone was nice. It was nothing like King Zeus's island. No battles, no blood, no death. The few blades of dead grass were the closest I had to home.

I took a closer look at the flower in my hands. The longer I stared, the more familiar the flower began to look. A glimmer of a memory flickered before my eyes. A memory from my childhood. Desperately, I grasped onto it, closing my eyes in concentration.

_A valley. There was a valley._

My eyes flew open, growing wider by the second. "A valley…" I whispered to myself. I concentrated harder as pieces of memory came back to me.

_It was a stretch of green. It seemed never-ending, like an ocean of grass with flowers floating along the waves._

My grip on the flower grew tighter as I strained my mind trying to remember more.

_A crowd of sheep, looking like one big cloud, started to disperse as they entered the valley. There was more than enough food for all of them._

The little red flower was getting strangled by then.

_The song of the brook. The rustling of the leaves. The swirling of the colours as the sun set every evening._

Gasping, I gaped at the flower. "I remember," I breathed. I could see the valley in my mind. The valley that was my first home.

"You were there," I whispered to the flower. "Five years ago, in the valley. You were there." The flower was pinker and whiter back then, but it was the same flower. Malcolm told me the name of the flower once. Again, I tried to reach for the memory.

"Sunroses." I jumped, nearly crushing some of the flowers. "The flowers. They're called sunroses." The deep voice had come from behind me.

My face was growing as red as the flower. _How long had he been standing there?_ I gave a quick nod, not taking my eyes off the flower. My mind was far from the valley now. It was back here with me, thinking about the person hovering behind me. Still crouching, I waited for him to leave.

But he came. I listened to his footsteps approaching, the whole time refusing to turn around or say anything to him.

"You know," he said, causing me to groan inside. _Great, now he wants to talk._ "The sunset here really is beautiful. I have a great view from my room. You can see that exact shade of red in the sky." He pointed to the flower in my hand. I said nothing, continuing to stare down at the red flower.

"I'm no stranger to nice sunsets. I've seen plenty of them. I don't need to see this one."

He shook his head and offered me a hand. "Take a good look at the sunset first. You can't decide you don't want to enjoy this sunset until you see it. It might end up surprising you."

"You're not giving up until I see this sunset, are you?" I asked, a small smile forcing its way onto my lips.

He shook his head. Holding out his hand, he said, "Come with me."

I stared at his hand. Slowly, my eyes started moving up. For the first time, I saw his face. His hair looked like a nest. The fact that the wind was playing with the raven-coloured nest didn't help much. His eyes though, were what caught my attention. The deep pools of sea-green were begging me to take his hand.

So I did.

"I don't even know your name," I said as he pulled me up.

With a firm grip on my hands, he started leading me away from the flower. "Percy."

I nodded, and walked with him. He only stared at me, and I realized he didn't know my name. "Thalia," I told him. My lips wanted desperately to say _Annabeth_, but everyone here needed to think I was a Princess. I was Princess Thalia.

"Thalia…" Percy's voice trailed off, and he started watching me strangely. The name seemed to mean something to him. "Come on. We don't want to miss the sunset."

A few minutes later, I found myself in front of a door on the castle's top floor. Statues of gods guarded the room. Percy pushed the door open, causing them to creak slightly. Ushering me to the window, he pointed to a wooden chair. Compared to the extravagance of the rest of the room, this chair looked simple.

"I know the chair isn't much. I'm considering getting another," Percy said, rubbing the back of his neck.

Sitting down, I said, "I like this chair." There was beauty in simplicity. It was a plain and simple box for instance, that revealed the silver necklace hanging around my neck.

"Then that can be your chair," Percy said. He gazed outside, leaning against the wall. "You think I'm crazy, don't you." He laughed, sounding nervous. "I guess I'm not like most princes. I don't know any other that spends their time wandering through gardens and watching sunsets."

So this was the prince. I tried to stare at him without catching his attention. Annabeth and Percy. Percy and Annabeth. Together.

I couldn't see it.

I followed his gaze to the setting sun. "I like watching sunsets too," I said, bring a smile back to his face. "I used to at least," I added in a hushed tone.

"What do you mean, used to?"

I felt my body grow tense. "You weren't supposed to hear that," I said weakly, not knowing what else to say. When I looked up and saw him about to apologize, I quickly said, "I guess I never found the time to watch. I used to, almost every night, until five years ago."

"Yeah, I understand," he said softly. Neither of us said anything for a while. I savoured the silence while it lasted. "So," he said when the sun was nearly hidden behind the horizon, "do you see the flower in the sky?"

The red surrounding the sun was the same shade as the flower. However, it wasn't the flower I saw in my mind.

"It looks like blood," I said, voicing my opinion. "Blood smeared across the sky."

* * *

**I know, that was hardly any Percabeth. It seems more like a friendship thing. But trust me, there will be a LOT more Percabeth in this story, now that Percy has been introduced. **

**Again, I am so sorry for taking so long to update. I promise you won't have to wait this long for the next chapter. **

**Now... review? :)**


	11. Chapter 11

**I am so sorry for taking this long to update. This is the first time it has taken me over a month to post a chapter and I am so sorry! And I'm sorry to those that thought this was a chapter.**

**Chapter 11 and 12 are nearly finished though, so I'll be posting the next chapter sometime this week maybe? My Easter present to you guys :) **

**On a side note, I have to thank you guys for all your reviews, favourites, and follows! 184 reviews, 67 favourites, and 97 followers. Wow! I never thought this story would get THAT many readers. Nearly 100 followers! Tell you what, leave a review on this AN and I'll give you a sneak peak for chapter 11. I'll give the entire part in Kallie's POV from the beginning of the chapter and part of the rest in Annabeth's POV. **

**Oh, and happy Easter!**


	12. Love

**To anyone that hasn't seen my Author's Note, I am incredibly sorry about taking so long to write this chapter. I've been super busy, and this was one of those chapters that just didn't want to be written, if you know what I mean.**

**I posted the fourth one shot of Definition of Percabeth! This one is called Define Forgiveness. Also, I would love it if you guys could check out my new one shot Forever and Always. It's a bit sad, but not too much.**

**And as for the dedication… This chapter is dedicated to all my readers that are still reading this even after my month with no update.**

**Now, before I bore you with my blabbering, here's chapter 11!**

* * *

_Kallie  
The City-State of Athens_

_The young slave girl placed the food neatly on the long wooden table, being careful not to drop anything. When she was pleased with her work, she headed back to the loud clattering and chatting of the kitchen to retrieve the other dishes. Unlike the other household slaves, she did her best to avoid the gossip about the family. It was none of her business what they did, nor did she care much about their affairs. That day however, she couldn't help but eavesdrop. After all, it wasn't completely her fault. They were talking too loud._

_"You know," her master said to his two sons, "today is your sister's birthday."_

_Scarfing down their meals, the two boys paid little attention to their father. One of them caught the slave girl's eyes and gave her a warm smile. She had helped take care of the boys, despite her being only a few years older than them, and the three of them had grown close. At least, as close as two sons of a wealthy merchant and a lowly slave girl could get._

_"Isn't she dead though?" one of the boys asked. "Do dead people still have birthdays?"_

_All the slaves stopped working for a second. Even the noises from the kitchen seemed to stop. The two boys were the only ones in the room blind to the rage growing in their father's grey eyes. Then, just as suddenly as the anger had started growing, it disappeared. Their master, the boys' father, took deep breaths, trying to calm himself before he spoke again._

_"Your sister is alive," he said. "She has something with her to protect her."_

_"What?" one of his sons asked._

_"A gift from her mother. Her mother was different from your mother. They are both special women, but your sister's mother was…" his voice trailed off as he tried to find an appropriate word. "Different. The gift will protect your sister."_

_"What is the gift?"_

_The slave girl's master smiled as he heard his son's question. The girl smiled as well as she watched the family moment before her. The smile disappeared as she heard her master's next words though._

_"A silver owl necklace."_

* * *

"I told you this would be the best sunset in the history of sunsets."

The sunset tonight looked particularly whimsical. Something about tonight made the purple just a little more purple, the orange a little more orange, and the pink a little more pink. The colours spread over the sky, covering up the blue like a blanket.

"You were right," I told Percy. "This is a beautiful sunset."

He gave me a playful smirk. "Thalia, admitting someone other than her was right?" He gasped, sounding far too overdramatic, and put a hand over his heart. Looking off into the distance, he yelled, "What has the world come to?"

Rolling my eyes, I shoved him out of his chair. He fell to the ground, still laughing. "Stop being such a Seaweed Brain. Don't ever try getting into theatre." Pushing himself off the ground, he went back to his seat. He still had a teasing grin on his lips. "And stop laughing."

"I'm not laughing. I'm smiling. There's a difference. And Seaweed Brain? You do realize that's your first nickname for me. Seaweed Brain."

Sitting down, he added, "Wow, you sure know how to make a guy feel special." That was what we said to each other every time we insult one another, whether it was on purpose or not. I was the one that had started it, of course. "Why Seaweed Brain?"

"It suits you," I told him, earning a shove back from him.

Looking back out the window, I noticed that the last rays of light were shining over the horizon. The sunset was nearly over.

I knew what that meant.

"Did you see the sunroses?"

He asked me that question every night since the first sunset we saw together. After the first couple of times, I decided to pretend I did to get him to stop. Apparently, I 'underestimated his people-judging abilities'.

_"Yes," I had said a couple days ago, after he had asked the question. "I can see them in the sky."_

_His sea-green eyes bore into my grey ones. The intensity of his stare had caused me to turn away, praying my cheeks didn't look as red as they felt._

_"You're lying." I had tried to deny those two words at first. My attempts were futile._

_When I had asked how he knew, he said to me, "You're as red as a radish."_

_I couldn't help it. Sarcastically, I had said, "Wow, you sure know how to make a girl feel special. I look like a radish. Thanks."_

_"Well I think you're a beautiful radish," he had said to me with a smile. He placed his hand on top of mine. I've held hands with many boys in my life. My brother, my father, Luke, and many of the other slaves. But Percy's hand was different. More gentle somehow._

_"Also, you're a horrible liar. You completely underestimated my people-judging abilities," he added jokingly. In a slightly more serious note, he said, "I could see that you weren't telling the truth. I could see it in your eyes."_

"Did you see the sunroses?" Percy asked again, snapping me out of my flashback. He was watching me closely, waiting for me to say something.

I shook my head, feeling the need to look away from his sea-green eyes. For some reason, I felt disappointed in myself every time I told him I couldn't see the flowers. I tried to see them for him. But I couldn't.

"What do you see then?" he asked.

I hesitated before answering, but I knew that he would somehow get the answer out of me, even if I lied.

"Blood." Seeing the look on his face, I laughed and said, "Am I being too depressing? I can say that I see pomegranates and ladybugs if you would prefer that."

Percy shook his head, not laughing along with me. "My father told me about what happened back at your own home. He said that Rachel and you were the only survivors, and that you'll need time to deal with what happened."

For a moment, I couldn't speak. I couldn't move, I couldn't breathe, I couldn't do anything.

_He knew. He didn't tell me. Why didn't he tell me?_

Finally, when I could trust myself with forming words, I whispered, "You knew?" He nodded sheepishly.

_He should have told me. Why didn't he tell me?_

I nodded, biting my bottom lip as I wondered exactly how much Percy knew. Almost as if he read my mind, Percy assured, "I don't know much about what happened. Just that your island was attacked. That's all."

"So you just went on pretending everything was alright. That everything was perfectly normal." Before he could respond, I blurted out, "Why didn't you tell me?"

There. I asked the question. Holding my breath, I waited for his answer.

He just shrugged. "I didn't think that it mattered," he said.

"But you couldn't have just told me that you knew my family had been killed? That you knew my home had been destroyed?"

Sighing, I looked up to face him. "You know that we've been at war, right?" Percy shook his head, trying to deny what I said, but I continued. "You know that we lost, and because of that, they came to slaughter us. It wasn't war, Percy. It was slaughter."

Death had spread over the island like the colours of the sunset had spread over the blue sky. But what had happened to the island of King Zeus was no sunset. And instead a swirl of thousands of whimsical colours, there was only one colour.

Red. The colour of blood.

I couldn't help it. I fell to the ground with a choked sob.

_No more tears_, I told myself. _No more tears._

It wasn't helping. My hand instinctively grasped onto the silver owl around my neck. The dam holding back all the water in my eyes finally broke. It was only when Percy rushed to my side when I remembered I wasn't alone.

"What am I doing," I whispered, shaking my head. I shoved Percy away from me and stood up.

"Thalia, you can't be strong all the time."

I don't know what it was. Maybe it was the fact that I just cried in front of him. Or the fact that he knew about what happened. Maybe I just wanted him to call me Annabeth instead of Thalia, at least just once.

I don't know what made me do it. I just snapped.

"Strong," I said through gritted teeth. "That's all I've ever been. Strong." I ran up to Percy. Looking at him straight in his eyes, I yelled, "Do you know what it's like? Do you? You have no idea what it's like when you _have_to be strong. Everyone else is depending on you. If you break, they break even more. You have no choice."

Percy said nothing for a while. Finally, he spoke. "You have a choice now."

Groaning, I angrily brushed the tears from my eyes. I closed them, knowing they would be bloodshot. "I'm sorry," I said. I could feel more tears welling up in my eyes. I had to get away. I stood up, saying, "I should go now."

I was leaving when I heard his voice again, echoing through the large room.

"After my mother died, I bawled like a baby." I stopped walking away as I heard his talk. Realizing I was listening, he continued.

"And you have it worse than I did. You lost your entire family and your home." He stood up and walked over, wrapping his arms around me and pulling me close like only my father, brother, or Luke would have done. "You have to let it out sometimes. A box can only seal so much without bursting, and we're no different."

I buried my head in his shoulder, breathing in his scent. It just felt like the right thing to do.

"I'm sorry, I overreacted. You're right," I said.

"Second time tonight. And wow. You apologized and admitted to overreacting in one sentence," he said, bringing a smile to both our faces.

"Look, I get it. I have to let myself cry sometimes. But can we just not talk about this for now?" I wasn't ready to deal with this yet. I couldn't admit that to anyone but myself, but I knew that Percy understood.

He nodded. "Just tell me about yourself then."

I thought for a while, but had nothing to say. "What am I supposed to tell you?" I asked.

"You're not _supposed_ to tell me anything. Just tell me whatever you want. I'll ask you a question then. What's your favourite colour?"

"Green," I said without thinking. "Sea-green. And you?"

"Grey."

We both smiled at each other before I asked my next question. "How old are you?"

"I turned thirteen a few days before you came here," he said. "When's your birthday?" I frowned, trying to remember. Percy gaped at me. "You don't know your own birthday?" he asked.

I just shrugged. "Sometime in the middle of fall. Birthdays weren't all that special in my family. You get older everyday anyway. What makes birthdays so special?"

Percy stood up, offering me a hand. As we walked back to our chairs by the window, he said, "To me, birthdays aren't really about celebrating the fact that someone's an year older. It's more about celebrating that one person in your life. A day to appreciate what they've done for you and to think about how much they mean to you."

I felt my eyes grow wide and my eyebrows rise as he spoke. When he finished, I said, "You know, you're not always a Seaweed Brain. You can actually be smart when you want to."

Percy grinned. "I think that's the nicest thing you've ever said to me." We both sat down, but he didn't let go of my hand. I'm glad he didn't. His room was cold, but his hand was radiating heat. "What's the nicest thing I've ever said to you?" he asked.

I thought for a while. "Probably the time you called me a beautiful radish," I said with a smirk.

Laughing, Percy wrapped his arm around me once again. "You do realize it's the middle of fall now, right?" When I nodded, he said, "Let's say today's your birthday. Happy birthday Thalia!"

"Do you have a present?" I asked teasingly.

Percy shook his head. "Nope," he said.

I gasped. Turning around, I said, "I'm leaving then, right now!"

"Not fair!" Percy yelled, not letting go of my hand. "Fine. You want to know a secret?" Percy asked.

"Of course." I waited in silence to hear what he had to say.

"Well, I was terrified when I first found out I was getting forced to marry someone. I didn't want to marry you," he started to say.

"You sure know how to make a girl feel special," I whispered. He smiled at out inside joke and continued.

"But I think I can live with it now. Actually, I know I can. Thalia, you're my best friend, and…"

Percy remained silent. As he looked into my eyes, I shivered. It wasn't because it was cold. In fact, Percy had one of the warmest rooms in the castle. It was the way he held me with with eyes. For some reason, I starter worrying about what his secret was. "And?" I asked, hardly breathing as I waited for him to speak.. "And what?"

Taking a deep breath, he said, "And I think I'm falling in love with you."

* * *

"And you just ran away?"

Rachel was trying not to look shocked. I could tell. But she couldn't help that her green eyes were growing wider by the second.

"Yeah," I said with a sigh. "I didn't know what else to do. He was just staring at me, waiting for an answer, and I panicked. What was I supposed to say?"

"You weren't _supposed_ to say anything," Rachel assured, giving me a quick hug. "There's nothing that you _had_ to say. Don't worry, Percy will understand. Go explain to him how you feel tomorrow."

I thought about what Rachel said. I tried to picture myself doing as she said. I tried to imagine what I would say. More importantly, what he would say.

"I'm not even sure how I feel," I said.

Rachel grasped onto both my hands and gave me an encouraging smile. "Then you can wait until you're ready."

* * *

**So how was this chapter? I hope it makes up for the long wait. There's a lot more Percabeth in this chapter than the last.**

**Here are some question to all you guys. Is it snowing where you live? It's April and there's a blizzard going on outside… For Easter, I helped my friend hide eggs for her younger siblings, and we just stuck them in the snow. And did any of you do anything special for Easter? I hope it was a good one for all of you :)**

**Anyway, review!**


	13. Run

**After weeks of being constantly busy, I had absolutely nothing to do on Sunday. So I wrote this chapter for you guys. And I have to thank invisibleyankeehat for being my 100th follower. Really, thank you so much!**

**One last thing. Do you prefer Thalia/Luke or Thalia/Nico? I'm CONSIDERING writing another story (this summer, when I have more time), and I can't decide between the two. Or do you just not like either of them? Tell me in your reviews!**

* * *

I leaned against the window as the first beams of light broke through the clouds. As the dark grey in the sky slowly became red, a little wind seeped into the room through the wooden shutters. Tempted by the cool breeze, I opened the shutters completely, welcoming the blast of sea air. I felt the wind play with my tangled curls, probably giving me a very Medusa-like look. It was definitely not a very princess thing to do.

Suddenly, I heard a groan from beside me. Quickly, I closed the shutters again. I didn't need Rachel waking up now. I walked over to her bed and bent down. Once I was convinced she was still asleep, I went back to peering over the shutters. The reds, oranges, and pinks were starting to take over the grey sky. The colours weren't as vibrant as in a sunset, but this would have to do. Soon, a touch of blue appeared in the sky.

I sighed, slouching against the wall. The other slaves would be up and about soon. I didn't have much time alone left.

I had stopped watching sunsets with Percy. Ever since the evening after he told me his big secret, I've been hiding in my room. When he came to talk to me, I got Rachel to lie, saying I wasn't feeling well. All three of us knew the truth.

According to Rachel, he accepted the lie with a quick nod, saying that he hoped I feel better soon.

"Annabeth?" Rachel said. She yawned as she stretched, sitting up. Her normally bright green eyes looked tired, and there were dark bags under her eyes. Yup, she was with Percy again last night. I heard her tiptoeing into the room late at night. She had thought I was already asleep, of course.

"Yeah, I'm here." I stood up and walked to the door. "I'm going to just walk around a bit," I said. She nodded, lying back onto her bed as I walked out.

I did this every morning now. I would just wander around the halls until it was time for breakfast. Staring at the decorations the King and Queen had collected over the years gave me something to keep myself busy.

Recently, Rachel started talking to Percy. Before, they would hardly say one word to each other. If it wasn't for me, they would never have even met each other. But now, neither of them need me to get them to talk to each other.

Ever since I stopped talking to Percy, he came by Rachel and my room every day to see if I wanted to talk. One day, when I wasn't there, Rachel invited him in. Now, they do everything but watch sunsets together.

I stopped to get a closer glance at a particularly large vase. Too busy staring at the intricate design, I never noticed him until he spoke.

"So how long are you going to keep avoiding me?" he asked, making me jump and knock over the vase. "Whoa!" Percy yelled as he ran forward to catch it.

As he placed it back on the table, I glared at him, hands on my hips. "Why'd you sneak up on me like that?" I yelled.

"Sorry," he said. "I only wanted to ask you a question. By the way, what's your answer?"

I shrugged, trying to stay calm. It was getting increasingly harder to do as Percy walked towards me. "I'm talking to you right now, right?"

"Yeah, then after saying maybe ten more words to me, you're going to go running off. You always do that now." I blushed, knowing what he said was true. I was considering whether or not I could slowly start inching backwards, then make a run for it.

"I love it when you do that," Percy said.

When I do what? Think about running away from him? "What do you mean?" I asked.

"When you blush. Normally, you act like this warrior that needs to be all independent. Not that I don't like that, but you look much more innocent when you're blushing."

I felt my cheeks growing even redder. "Look," I said, turning around, "I have to go now. I'll talk to you later." I started running off when I felt Percy grab my hands.

"No. I'm tired of you avoiding me." He looked at me with a desperate look in his eyes. He wasn't letting me go until he got his answer. "I want to be able to talk to you again. To watch a sunset with you. To be your friend again."

"Percy, I have to go," I said, shaking my hand to try to get him to let go. I had to get out of there before he made everything worse.

"You're not leaving me again, Thalia," he said firmly. "I'm not going to let it happen. Forget about what happened that night. I want us to go back to normal."

"That's the most ridiculous thing you've ever said. How could you expect me to be able to just forget about what happened? How are we supposed to just go back to normal?" I snapped. I didn't even know what normal was anymore.

"Fine then! Don't forget about that night! But what's the big deal? Is it so bad that I'm falling in love with the person I'm supposed to marry? What's wrong with it?"

"Well how do I know if you really are falling in love? You could be just saying that because we're getting forced to married. Or maybe because you want to make me love you, then crush me like a bug." The last part came spewing out, escaping from my lips before I could stop them. Cringing at my own words, I tried to take them back. "Percy, I-"

"I really am falling in love!" he insisted, interrupting what I was about to say. Maybe that was best, since I really had no idea what to say and would have ended up rambling like an idiot. "And how could you even say that? It would hurt me just as much as you. Do you really think that's what I'm trying to do?"

"I didn't mean it! I swear I didn't. It just came out. I was mad and was saying things I didn't mean. You can't think I actually meant it!" We were both screaming by then, but I didn't care who could hear us, as long as he heard.

"Well what was I supposed to say? How was I supposed to react? And don't bother trying to run away." His normally pleasant demeanor was contorted and consumed by his anger. The bright sea-green of his eyes grew dark. He yelled so loudly that I took a step back from him, wincing.

He immediately calmed down when he saw what I did. "Thalia…" he said, reaching for my face. I flinched away.

"I really need to go now," I said quickly, surprised at how hoarse my voice sounded. I ran down the hall, praying Rachel already left our room. I needed to be alone.

* * *

_"Do we have to work again today? My arms still hurt from yesterday."_

_It was the day Kallie and I were separated. The ship suddenly jerked forward, making both of us fall over. "Annabeth!" she cried out. I took one quick glance at her and realized she had landed on her back, where the pirate had whipped her just the day before._

_"I'm right here!" I stood up to get to her, and nearly fell over again. Before I could get to her, the door flew open and light streamed into out dark cabin. Our kidnapper stood at the door._

_"Don't bother trying to run away."_

Curled up on the floor, leaning against my bed, I let the memory replay itself over and over again in my head.

I didn't have the chance to run away then. I didn't have the chance to save myself. Now, I could. I could run on and on, and Percy wouldn't be able to hurt me.

As I sat there thinking, I nearly laughed out loud. I was separated from my family, captured by pirates, sold as a slave, and had my home completely destroyed. I had barely shed a tear. And now, Percy made me want to start bawling my eyes out by only saying a few words to me. Pathetic.

I knew I was falling, and I was falling fast. Just thinking about him made me smile. Being with him made my day. I remember when I used to impatiently sit in my room, just waiting for the sunset to come so I could spend time with him. I was falling in love.

I hated it. Love was making me vulnerable. As love as I loved him, or at least was falling in love with me, Percy could destroy me with a single blow. I really did mean it when I said that he could make me fall in love with him and crush me like a bug. He could do it so easily that it scared me.

And I hated being scared. I hated being vulnerable. I hated love.

But after feeding Percy lies for so long, I felt a burning desire to tell him the truth. I was sick and tired of secrets. There was something he needed to know, no matter how scared I was to tell him.

* * *

Slowly breathing in and out, I tried to muster up any of the bravery I had. My hand rose up in a fist, and, in a painstakingly slow motion, I swung it at the door. And like I had been doing for the past hour or so, I stopped my hand right before it hit the door, letting it drop to my side once more.

I slumped against the wall, feeling discouraged. Why couldn't I do this? Even after everything I had faced, someone drops the "l word" on me, and I freak out.

I took a deep breath. _Don't think. Just do it_, I told myself. Before I could stop myself, I knocked on his door. I could hear him walking towards the door. I stood my ground. I wasn't going to try running away this time.

When he opened the door, he looked surprised to see me standing there. His mouth opened, but he didn't say anything. He didn't know what to say. Before he could figure it out, I blurted out, "I'm sorry."

He nodded. "I am too." For a while, we just stood there. Neither of us knew what to do.

"Can I come in?" I asked in an attempt to break the heavy silence. I brushed a bit of my hair behind my ears nervously. "We need to talk. Right now."

"Yeah," he said, holding his door open. "Come on in." I walked into his room. Suddenly, I felt uncertain about what I was going to do. Maybe I should have thought this through a little more. Then, Percy closed the door.

Too late to back out now.

I headed over to the chairs by the window, seeing as those two were the only seats in his room. I was about to sit down in my regular wooden one, when I realized that would be too much like watching sunsets together. Without thinking, I sat in Percy's more comfortable, ornamented chair.

Percy looked slightly confused, and I blushed. "I can sit there if you want me to," I said, motioning at my usual chair. "Yeah, I'll move."

I stood up to switch chairs, but he held up his hand, telling me to stop. "I'll take this chair," he said, sitting down on the plain wooden chair. Hesitantly, I sat back down on Percy's chair.

"So…" I said, letting my voice trail off.

"So…" Percy imitated.

"So…" I repeated, mostly because I wasn't sure how to start off what I needed to say.

"So…" Percy said, swinging his legs anxiously.

I sighed. We were getting nowhere. "So, I need to tell you something." I looked at him uncertainly, and he motioned for me to continue. "I've been lying to you ever since I met you. I'm not who you think I am."

Percy looked perplexed as he tried to figure out what I meant. I was trying to figure out what to say to him next. "I'm not exactly sure where you're going with this," Percy said. "Continue."

"You can't stop me. Just let me finish telling you before you say anything, alright? No matter how desperately you want to say something," I told him.

He nodded in agreement. "Alright. I won't stop you."

I scratched the back of my neck. It was a nervous habit I had picked up from Percy. He had to have rubbed off on me somehow when I spent so much time with him.

"I'm not a princess," I finally said. I glanced up at him to see his reaction.

With a smile, Percy said, "You're definitely more of a warrior."

"Hey! I said no interrupting!" I scolded him jokingly, until I remembered what I was about to tell him. The smile dropped from my face as I continued.

"So yeah, I'm not a princess. You see this silver necklace?" I asked, showing him the owl hanging from my neck. He nodded. A nervous pressure built in my chest. I kept asking myself, _What if he hates me after this?_ But I looked up at the compassion in his sea-green eyes and I knew that he couldn't.

Before I could stop myself, I said, "My dad gave this to me. He was a farmer and shepherd on an island far from here."

Percy's eyes grew wide in realization as he started to understand what I was trying to say. I looked down at my feet. I couldn't look into his eyes. That would only make this so much harder. "I was a slave on King Zeus's island, until we were attacked. Rachel and I were the only survivors. When your sailors came, they were looking for Thalia." I let my voice start to rise as I started speaking faster.

"Two slave girls would have only slowed them down, and they would have left us behind to starve to death. Rachel told them I was Thalia, they believed us, and they took us hear. But I'm not Thalia. I'm not a princess." My voice cracked as I spoke the last few words.

I was going to regret this later. I could barely stand to continue. The shocked expression on Percy's face was making it too hard. Using up any last bit of courage I had left in me, I looked into his eyes firmly. I wasn't breaking down now.

"I am Annabeth Chase."

My name echoed through the room. He knew my real name. He knew I was Annabeth Chase.

I kept my eyes on Percy, though they were desperately trying to pull away. I needed to see his reaction. If he decided to tell everyone on this island, so be it. At least I didn't have to live with this lie for the rest of my life.

His mouth opened and tried to form words. He kept blinking and rubbing his eyes, as if I would disappear if he did it enough times. "I…" he said, sounding pained. He groaned, holding his face in his hands. Without even looking at me, he whispered hoarsely, "Just… Just leave."

Chewing on my bottom lip, I nodded and stood up. This wasn't running away. He needed space and time alone. I headed towards the door, but stopped. After all, I wasn't sure when the next time I would ever talk to Percy will be. That is, if I ever talk to him again at all.

"I wish we can still be friends," I said. "I miss being with you." Then, I walked out the door, letting it swing shut behind me.

* * *

"Rachel?" I said meekly.

"What is it?" she asked as she was walking out the door.

My arms crossed in front of my chest. I had no idea how to tell her this. "I need to tell you something before you go see Percy."

Rachel stared at the door, debating on whether she should stay or go. Eventually, she shrugged and walked over, sitting down on my bed. "Okay," she said. "Tell me."

"Well," I started off, "I talked to Percy like you told me to."

"And how did that go?" she asked.

I groaned. "Horrible. I didn't talk about how I feel about him like you said though. We ran into each other, screamed at each other, then I kind of told him that I'm not Thalia." Rachel's mouth hung wide open, and I realized that it was Rachel's secret as much as it was mine.

I felt my heart sag at the betrayed look in her eyes, but ignoring the guilt, I said, "Don't be mad at me! I had to tell him. Keeping the secret from him was killing me."

Rachel closed her eyes, unsure of what to do next. I waited for a slap on my face, for her to scream at me, and for her to tell me I wasn't her best friend anymore. As she opened her eyes, I braced myself. I deserved what was coming.

Suddenly, she wrapped her arm around me, pulling me into a hug. "Oh, Annabeth…" she whispered. After I recovered from my surprise, I hugged her back. After a moment of silence, she asked, "Is he going to tell anyone?"

"I don't know," I admitted. "And I don't care. I'd rather have everyone else find out than not telling him the truth. He just told me to leave, so I did."

Rachel nodded. "I'll go talk to him, try to help him figure things out. Do you think he'll be okay with that?"

"I'm sure he'll be fine with it." I forced a smile onto my face. Rachel's own smile wavered. She knew when my smiles were fake. I don't even know why I was trying so hard. "Now go talk to him," I said, pointing to the door.

She gave me a quick hug. "I will," she said as she headed for the door. Only when I was sure she was gone did I let my smile disappear.

* * *

The faint starlight shone through the tiny slivers of space in the wooden shutters. There would be a new moon sometime soon, meaning the moon was just a thin white slice in the dark sky.

Suddenly, the door creaked open. Rachel stepped into the room, closing the door behind her. I waited until she was in her own bed before I spoke.

"What did he say?" I asked, nearly screaming, causing Rachel to jump.

"Annabeth!" she whispered. Right, we had to be quiet. Everyone else was asleep. "I thought you were sleeping!"

"What did he say?" I repeated firmly, though I whispered this time. When Rachel didn't answer, I sighed. "Just tell me," I added, a little less forcefully. I needed to know how he was dealing with my secret. I knew I would regret telling him.

"He's upset," she said, making me feel slightly guilty for the billionth time that day. "He hasn't told anyone though," she added on a lighter note, as if that made everything better.

For a moment, we just sat in the darkness without speaking a word. "Have you figured out how you feel about him?" Rachel asked.

I nodded, though I wasn't sure if she could see. I was about to tell her, but I hesitated. For once, I wasn't sure if I should tell her. _She's your best friend_, I said to myself. _You tell her everything_.

"I'm afraid," I finally said. That was all I would tell her. It was all I could tell her.

I heard Rachel crawling into her bed. "But you're Annabeth. You're fearless."

Percy did tell me I was more of a warrior than a princess. Then again, even warriors have fears.

"I'm afraid of being vulnerable. I can't help but keep running away."

* * *

**I really have to thank all of my readers. I feel like I don't give you guys enough credit. I send a PM to most of my reviewers thanking them, but I also want to thank readers that don't review for reading my story. ****Even though it sometimes takes me a long time to post, you still keep reading, and you all have no idea how grateful I am to have such amazing readers.**

**Sorry, just had to say that. But seriously, you guys are amazing!**

**Review!**


	14. Impossible

**This is the longest I've ever gone without updating and I am so sorry. I'm not going to give any excuses. I feel horrible about it.**

**Thanks to any of you who are still reading and to everyone that reviewed, favourited, and followed even when I didn't update! You're all awesome.**

* * *

_Malcolm  
The Kingdom of Zeus_

_He had failed._

_He failed his father. His step-mother. Himself. Everyone._

_Especially his sister._

_As soon as the soldiers had gotten off the ships, the island had become a bloodbath. It wasn't war. It was savagery. Innocent women and children were being slaughtered._

_His grey eyes paid no attention to the barbarity around him. They only scanned desperately over the island, searching. He searched for her blonde curls, tan skin, and her sharp grey eyes._

_Suddenly, his eyes stopped on a lifeless body. The person was obviously an athletic young girl with a mass of blonde curls. His breath got caught in his throat as panic built in his chest. It couldn't be his sister, right?_

_He needed a closer look._

_Not able to breathe, he inched towards the body, wanting so desperately to confirm his fear was false, but afraid it would be true. Next to the body was another girl, this one with red hair instead of blonde. He gently pushed her to the side so he could kneel beside the blonde girl._

_This wasn't his sister. It couldn't be his sister._

_Though he touched the redhead, he couldn't touch the blonde. It felt stupid, but he was scared to. The young soldier shifted slightly so he could see her face. Her entire body was covered in blood. It was hard to tell how much of it was hers. Her features were still visible though. He had to do it. He had to see._

_After all, it couldn't be his sister._

_Taking a deep breath, he let his eyes look down at the face._

_There was sadness, like when a child breaks his or her favourite toy. Then there was grief. Grief was worse than sadness. It was the feeling of hopelessness, helplessness, and being trapped in despair with no escape. Then, there was overwhelming grief._

_Overwhelming grief was the most extreme level of pain and sadness that crushed you until you couldn't even breathe. You couldn't eat. You couldn't sleep. The world became a colourless living nightmare._

_Overwhelming grief was what the soldier felt as he ran away, arms wrapped around himself and clutching on so hard like he had nothing else left. Wave after dark wave of despair wracked his body. He felt empty, but he felt pain, like he had been picked clean by vultures. One thought rang through his head again and again: Annabeth was gone._

_Hiding behind a home as the screams died down, he rocked his body, curled up into a ball. Annabeth was dead. His sister was dead. She was dead._

_Dead._

_It was the only thing he could think of. A single word. It held so much power. It had broken him._

_Dead._

_Dead._

_Dead._

_He repeated it over and over again._

_A small surge of sanity washed over him. Small, but it was enough to pull him out of his trance. The soldier stood up bravely with determination like only a true soldier could do. He would bury his sister's body. Somewhere away from this bloodbath. Somewhere the sun shines, where the flowers grow, where there is life._

_Somewhere like their home._

_The soldiers of King Hades had already left. The warships could be seen leaving on the horizon. He had no way off the island. But he searched for his sister's body anyway. He had to do it for her. _

_Finally, he reached the place where he had found the body before. His spirits lifted slightly. There was still something he could do to make this better._

_But she wasn't there._

_His spirits came crashing down as the realization struck him. Her body could have been moved and destroyed. It wouldn't be surprising after seeing what brutality the soldiers were capable of._

_The grey-eyed soldier fell to his knees. He never knew it was possible to feel grief this strong._

_He was a failure._

* * *

"Annabeth."

I kept walking. I couldn't talk to him yet.

"Annabeth," he said a little louder this time. I swerved into another corridor, hoping he would stop following me. I picked up my pace, hoping vainly that I could lose him.

He sighed exasperatedly. "Annabeth!" he shouted so loud that I winced. I glanced around me, trying to find another exit, but I was at a dead end. Groaning, I kept walking to the far end of the hall, not having another choice. I was trapped.

"Annabeth?" It was more of a question this time, not shouted anymore. The hallway was silent except for my own light footsteps. He had stopped following me.

It was only then when I realized that I was doing exactly what I didn't want to. I was running away.

Letting my feet stop moving, I heard him start walking again towards me. Not at the brisk pace he chased me with, but at a slower speed. More gentle.

"Annabeth, just let me apologize," Percy said pleadingly.

I blinked, confused by what he had just said. "Why?" I asked.

"For not letting you fully explain last time. For making you leave. For being so harsh to you. I didn't mean to, I promise I didn't. Thalia, I'm so sorry," he said so quickly he didn't notice his mistake.

"Annabeth," I reminded him, trying to sound gentle. "I'm not Thalia, remember?" He nodded, and opened his mouth to apologize again.

"Percy, don't." He looked surprised at my harsh tone. Breathing in and out to calm myself, I said, "You have no reason to apologize. I'm the one that messed up. I kept such a huge secret from you, and I shouldn't have done that. If you want to tell people, then do it. I'd understand why. No one wants to marry a slave girl. I'd understand if you don't forgive me too. I wouldn't forgive me."

Staring at the space beside his head, I tried to form an apology. Definitely something I'm not good at.

Forcing myself to look at him in his eyes, I said, "I'm sorry. Everything was my fault."

I didn't expect what he did next. I didn't deserve it either.

Slowly, he reached for my hand. I let him hold it. For a while, he just cradled it in his larger hands, his confidence building every second I didn't pull away.

"Come with me," he said. Not letting go, he led me to his room. I hesitated before going in, remembering what had happened the last time I was in his room. Percy noticed my hesitation and gave me a small, but encouraging smile.

Biting my lip nervously, I stepped into the room. _Do this for Percy_, I told myself. Percy motioned for me to sit down in my usual chair, but I shook my head. "I'll stand," I told him.

"Then I will too." He pushed the two chairs off to the side and stood leaning against the wall before he spoke again. "Talk to me."

"About what?" I asked.

He shrugged. "Just tell me about yourself. There really isn't much I know."

I nodded. It was the least I could do.

"I told you already my father was a farmer and shepherd. He was also the best father I could ever ask for. My older brother Malcolm, he was annoying, but he loves me and I love him. I have two younger brothers, Bobby and Matthew. They were babies when I last saw them, and I thought I hated them. I know better now though, and I wish I could have seen them grow up. And my step-mother…" I thought about what I should say about her.

"I was young and stupid. She was trying to be a real mother to me, but I couldn't see that. I miss all of them and I regret every mistake I made with my family."

I continued telling him about my life. I told him about everything from the pirate attack to fooling around with Rachel on King Zeus's island, and he listened. I told him about everything I wished I could fix. As I kept talking, it got easier.

"And now, I'm here. To everyone but Rachel, you, and me, I'm Princess Thalia. I don't know what to do." My arms crossed across my chest and I shook my head in distress.

Percy pondered on everything I had just told him, scratching his head in thought. Finally, he said, "You miss your family, right?" I nodded in response. "You want to see them again?" I nodded a second time, not certain why he was asking. "Then you're going to see them again."

I stood up straighter and searched his face for any sign showing he was lying. "What do you mean?" I asked.

Percy grinned, obviously excited about his idea. "It'll be an adventure. Just the two of us, or maybe even with Rachel. We'll find your family and we won't come back until we do. I can fight, and I'm sure you'll learn to fight quickly. What do you think?"

Already, I could spot some major flaws in his plan. "But what would you tell your father? That you want to risk your life to search for a family you don't even know?"

"Then I won't tell him. We'll run away. It'll be easy to get out of here. I have a boat, I know where to get supplies, and I have maps of all of Greece." He seemed proud of his answer.

"But if you run away, taking a princess with you," I said, cringing as I called myself a princess, "your father would send search parties."

"We'll travel quickly. I'm good at sailing, and they'll have to search all of Greece! They'll never find us." Sensing my reluctance, he added, "I promise I won't stop until you're reunited with your family."

I remained silent. I couldn't say anything. My voice got caught in my throat. Percy frowned. "What's wrong? Don't you want to be reunited with your family?"

I couldn't figure out how to voice my fear. "What if it's impossible?" I finally whispered, not able to speak any louder.

"What do you mean impossible?" I sighed, not wanting to explain. Percy could be so clueless. "We can find your family. It's not impossible. It's completely possible! Well, it would be hard, but…"

I let Percy continue to ramble. I needed a moment to think.

The last time I saw anyone in my family was during the pirate attack. I didn't get to see if they were captured.

If they survived.

"What could possibly stop us from finding them?" It took me a while to realize he had stopped talking. "Well? What could stop us?" Percy repeated.

I had to face this fear sooner or later.

"Death," I said in a hoarse voice. As I spoke that single word, the entire room grew colder. I shivered, regretting saying anything. But it was too late to back out now.

Changing to a whisper, I added, "Death could make it impossible. What if they're all dead?"

Percy looked surprised, unable to find something to say. "Annabeth…" he started to say when I shook my head. I couldn't listen to him continue.

Understanding what I meant, he stopped talking. Instead, he walked over to me and held onto my hand, cradling it like he did before.

Neither of us said anything for a while. I closed my eyes, trying to think happier thoughts. I had been telling myself that my family could be dead since I last saw them, wanting to prepare myself in case I ever discovered my fears were true.

"I don't care whether this mission is impossible or not. I'm always going to help you, Wise Girl. I promise," Percy said, interrupting my thoughts.

A smile slowly spread across my face. Not a big smile, but it was genuine. "Thanks Seaweed Brain."

* * *

**I know that the end isn't very good... I couldn't figure out how to write it. **

**Well, now that it's summer, I'll have more time to write and update! :)**


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